Chapter Text
Harley was setting the table for lunch when he heard the elevator open.
“Y’all back already? Thought there’d be a line-” he looked up and saw that it was Peter standing next to the elevator.
“Um,” she started, rubbing an arm awkwardly, making her oversized shirt slip off her shoulder. She stared at the floor. “I’m sorry?” she said.
He emptied his hands and stood up straight. “Come ‘ere.”
He could see the brief moment of panic on her face as she did her best to look anything and everything but him.
“Come. Here.”
She walked over, a clear bundle of nerves, and from the smell of it on the verge of tears. “I’m sorry,” she repeated, stopping a full arms length from him.
“Come ‘ere,” Harley repeated softly.
She glanced at his face before taking another few tentative steps forward, and squeaked a bit when he enveloped her in a hug.
“You damn near scared me to death, woman,” Harley rumbled. “Took ‘bout 3 years offa my life. Next time, you come ‘n see me, ya understand? I’ll tell ‘em to f*ck off, and that ya need space, okay? Don’t be lockin’ yerself where I can’t get to you.”
“I’m sorry,” Peter said miserably, and hugged him back.
He scented her hair, but it wasn’t enough. So he picked her up, ignoring her weak protests, set her on the couch and lovingly took her shoes off and covered her with a blanket.
“Harley- what-”
Then he laid damn near on top of her, squishing her into the back of the couch. He rumbled, and after a second, she sighed and relaxed.
“Alpha,” she whined a bit. “Not time for my-” she yawned hugely. “Nap yet.”
He grunted, uncaring, and shifted a bit to make sure she was thoroughly pinned before he could relax himself. Now she was safe. Now she wasn’t running off or getting stuck or god knows what else. It satisfied a deep internal itch he didn’t even know was there until she was safely beneath him.
He stroked fingers through her hair, and she sighed softly in response, pressing her head into his hand.
“See?” he said quietly. “This is where you belong, Little One,” he teased.
She flushed, such a pretty color. “Didn’t mean to make a scene,” she grumbled.
He hummed. This was nice in ways he couldn’t even describe with words. When they were like this, it was like they had their own little world just to themselves.
“Ya just panicked a bit, is all. Which is why, next time, ya need to panic yer way to me. Ya hear? I ain’t afraid of yer Daddy.”
She huffed. “Sometimes I think you look for reasons to be mad at him,” she scolded. “And my pout works just fine, thank you.”
“Uh huh,” he countered. “That why ya broke Jarvis so hard he told me you were in heat?”
She flushed deeper. “I wasn’t really in heat,” she protested. “I just wanted him to lock the doors.”
He chuckled. “Of course you weren’t in heat, Little One. I might have gotten a C in bio, but even I know alphas have ruts.”
She was quiet for a while. “Is that why you didn’t come get me?” she asked softly.
Harley knew a trap when he heard one. “First of all, yer Daddy was fit to be tied when they couldn’t get Jarvis to even stop at yer floor with the elevator. Second of all, it’s yer territory and the last I heard, you were screamin’ about wantin’ us to go away. I ain’t never set foot in a lady’s room like that and I ain’t ‘bout to start.”
She deflated a bit. “But I was mad then,” she complained.
“Still not gonna shove my way into yer room just cuz you mighta changed yer mind,” Harley said. “Were ya sad I didn’t come rescue my Little One?” he teased.
She flushed. “I didn’t want to be rescued,” she lied. “I just- everyone was there but you.”
Harley damn near had a headache on the spot. Wasn’t that just like a woman? All fuss and bother about wanting to be left alone, then deeply offended when they were? He hummed as sympathetically as possible. “Sounds like ya need to start sayin’ what you want,” he said. “Because if you’d called for me, I woulda come ‘n gotcha.”
“You didn’t even call me,” she complained, like she was sure that his lack of telepathy was actually somehow a character flaw. Was she seriously pouting at him? Jesus, she was.
“I most certainly did,” Harley protested. “I said, ‘hang on, we’ll come ‘n get ya’, and then you started throwin’ things.”
“You said ‘we’, or something. I didn’t want anyone else,” she complained bitterly.
“Ya know, there’s this marvelous thing called ‘words’,” he teased.
“I panicked! I was upset, and then you didn’t even come to watch Star Wars with me.”
“I weren’t invited-”
“You didn’t even call!”
“I asked Jarvis and he said you were fine-”
“Well he didn’t tell me,” she huffed.
“I’m sorry,” he said. He didn’t say ‘Next time I’ll be sure to make a proper fuss’ because he knew better than to light that fuse, but he said it in his head.
“What?” She’d clearly expected him to argue.
“I said I’m sorry. I didn’t mean ta make ya feel all neglected,” he soothed. He made a show of scenting her hair and squishing her a bit more into the sofa back. “You okay darlin’? Ya want me to get you somethin’ special for lunch? Maybe a new piece of jewelry? How can I make it up to ya?”
She flushed. “You don’t have to buy me things,” she fussed, clearly soaking up his attention. “I just-” she trailed off.
She wanted his undivided attention is what she wanted, judging by how pleased she scented just now.
“You wanna help in my workshop?” he asked. “Work on somethin’? Or ya want to watch somethin’ with me?”
“You have another project?” she asked, perking up considerably.
He didn’t but he could damn well come up with something. “Of course darlin’. Whatever you want.” He trailed fingers behind her ear, cupping her face. She shivered a bit, and relaxed even further.
There we go, he thought, feeling pleased with himself. “See? Good girls who use their words get what they want,” he murmured.
“Good?” she fussed doubtfully.
“Of course. Yer always my good girl, darlin’,” he said, and kissed her hair.
She purred- which had always struck him as a bit odd because alphas rumbled, but then again maybe it was because she was a girl and it was like an anatomy thing? But he didn’t think about it too much because her scent changed and Jesus Christ.
Greedy, he buried his face in her hair and inhaled. She should smell like this all the time, his brain insisted. He rumbled back-
“We have return- HOLY sh*t. Harley James Keener- that is a community couch!” Evan shouted.
Harley startled upright, feeling flustered and oddly caught out. “What?” he snapped. It was well past noon, but he still felt like it was too damn early for him to be yelled at for no reason.
“Congratulations man it’s about f*cking time but- oh,” Evan trailed off as he took in Peter and her blanket. “False alarm!” he announced back into the elevator.
Mary-Anne came out of the elevator, and scowled at Evan. “Jesus, Evan. Sorry Harl. Do we need to leave?”
He frowned at them. “What for? And why the hell are ya carryin’ all that Mary-Anne?” he stalked over to relieve her of the giant carry-out bag.
“The sodas are heavier,” Evan protested, heaving his own bags onto the kitchen island. “Plus I have the sides.”
Harley grunted. He’d let it pass this time, he decided. Next time he’d go with them. He’d forgotten how bulky it was when you bought fried chicken for a group.
“You alright Peter?” Mary-Anne asked, sitting on the couch while Peter struggled upright.
“I’m okay,” she said. “I uh-” she blinked slowly like she was concussed.
“Is yer blood sugar low again?” Harley asked, digging the chicken buckets out of the sack.
“Harley you know damn well what’s wrong with her,” Mary-Anne snapped. “Come on, let’s go wash your face,” she soothed, helping Peter stand.
“What?” Harley asked, beyond confused. “What’s wrong?”
The girls pointedly ignored him as they walked past him to the bathroom.
“Whadda I do?” he lamented to Evan.
Evan made a show of walking over to slap at Harley’s back way too hard. “Harley. You know I love you like a brother. But you are the stupidest f*cking alpha I’ve ever met in my entire life.”
“What?” now he was offended and befuddled.
“I could hear your f*cking rumble all the way at the elevator,” Evan scolded.
“She were upset!” Harley protested. “Yesterday was a right clusterf*ck and she was mad I weren’t psychic! Ya know how women are-”
“It sounded like we were about to find her with no pants on,” Evan said.
“What would she do that for?” Harley asked. It was the middle of the day and they were in the living room. Now he was concerned that Evan was tripping.
Evan sighed. “Harley, if you don’t know why women take their pants off for a nice strong alpha who rumbles like that, I literally do not know how to help you.”
He stared at Evan. Evan stared back with an expectant look on his face. They stayed that way for several long horrible seconds as he tried to parse the beta’s meaning.
A thought occurred to him. He narrowed his eyes. “Are you makin’ a sex joke ‘bout me ‘n my step-sister?” he threatened.
“First, not a joke, and second, is she though?” Evan said. “Like, even legally?”
Harley growled.
“I’m just saying that waiting until we were gone was a smooth move, but next time text us and we’ll go find somewhere else to be for a while.”
Harley stared at him, incredibly aware he was missing something. “Wait. Wait. Is this- are you... was I inappropriate? I didn’t touch her butt or anythin’ though-”
“I did not say that. At all. In fact, touching her butt might even be the best idea you’ve ever had-”
“Stop makin’ fun of me,” Harley complained, now completely horrified. “Sides, her aunties said I can’t do that no more. I was just tryin’ to make her not mad at me.”
Evan hummed thoughtfully. “Uh huh. I hear you, and I’m just gonna breeze right past the whole ‘you can’t touch her butt anymore’ part and tell you that you should talk to her. Because it’s her body and I think she knows what she does and does not want you to do to it.”
Harley nodded. Evan was right of course, even though she’d certainly seemed pleased enough before everyone came in shouting at him. Maybe he’d misunderstood? The thought pained him, and he waited anxiously outside the bathroom door for the women to come out.
Mary-Anne opened the door first, took one look at him and rolled her eyes. “Oh for heaven’s sake. Peter! Will you come ‘n talk to this alpha before he dies from being stupid?” She took a step back so that Peter would take her place in the doorway.
“What’s wrong?” Peter demanded, alarmed.
He wilted before her possible wrath. “Darlin’, I am so sorry.”
“What?”
He took in her confused face and found possible hope. “Evan... he said. He um. I might not have been.. inappropriate...”
“When?” Peter demanded. “What are you talking about?”
Jesus Christ. Had Evan wound him up for nothing?
“I um. My rumblin’-”
“Oh Harley,” Peter sighed, and to his astonishment, stepped forward to give him a hug. “I like it when you rumble for me.”
And now he could breathe again. “Oh good,” he said, because words were hard now apparently, and after a moment, belatedly hugged her back.
“It makes my head go quiet. It just took me a minute to um. Reboot or whatever.”
“I just want ya to be happy. Ya know ya can tell me to piss off, right?” he said, just in case.
“I know,” Peter said. “But I’m kinda hungry so...”
“Come on then. We got extra cuz I figured you’d drop in,” Harley said. Words could not relay how relieved he was. He walked on air back to the kitchen where he carefully made two plates, and put one on the couch, and the other on the kitchen island with Mary-Anne.
Evan watched him do it, and surveyed the island. “Um...”
“Ya can eat on the couch,” Harley said simply.
“What?” Evan protested.
“Ya wound me up for nothin’,” Harley didn’t quite growl. “Damn near gave me an attack thinkin’ I’d hurt Peter. Go eat on the couch and repent, ya heathen.”
Evan made various noises of protest, but eventually ate on the couch while everyone else ate at the island.
“Oh no, whatever will I do. I have to sit in luxury and eat,” Evan heckled from across the room.
“You get so much as a crumb on those cushions and you’re vacuuming the whole thing,” Harley decreed.
“Ah, come on!”
“Harley... does he really need to sit over there?” Peter asked quietly. “He’s upset.”
“He’ll get over it,” Harley said.
“Mary-Anne-” Peter started.
“It’s fine,” Mary-Anne said. “It’s his own fault for being a horrible communicator,” she finished loudly.
“I spoke english! I opened my mouth and sounds came out and everything!” Evan shouted back. “I told him to text me and we’d give them space! What more do you want from me, omega?”
“Jesus. Fine! I’ll just have to work on it more from my end,” Mary-Anne said.
“Work on what?” Harley asked.
“I heard there’s a big thing coming up for Clint’s birthday,” Mary-Anne said to Peter, pointedly ignoring him.
Harley huffed in irritation, but otherwise kept his peace.
Peter nodded. “Daddy says it’s a good excuse for a training exercise. Last I heard, Johnny and his family are going to try to make it.” She paused. “What are you working on?”
“Do you plan on going out and hunting Johnny down?” Mary-Anne asked, grinning. “You could shoot him in the ass.”
Peter nearly choked on a piece of chicken with a startled giggle. “I dunno. Ma hasn’t decided if they’re gonna let me run around in the woods yet. But that does sound like fun.”
“Harley? Who are you teaming up with?” Mary-Anne asked innocently. Too innocently.
Harley grunted. “Dunno if I’m goin’,” he said suspiciously.
“You should go team up with Peter!” Evan said loudly from the couch. “Shoot her dad while you’re at it. You know you want to!”
“Don’t go just to shoot Daddy,” Peter scolded.
“I ain’t gonna shoot just him,” Harley said, considering. “Anyone know if Thor is gonna be there?”
“Thor’s not allowed guns,” Peter said. “His lighting thing makes the tank with the balls in it explode.” “Sounds like he’d be an easier target then,” Evan said.
“We’ll have to see,” Harley said.
***********************************
Peter stood awkwardly in the clearing and listened as the wind blew the leaves in the nearby tree line that was punctuated by random distant pops. The outdoor shooting range wasn’t that impressive actually. It was just some folding tables set up in a field with targets on a hill not too far away. There was a little pavilion like you’d see at a public park a little ways behind them for snacks and drinks and ammo and things.
Outside of yanking it away or webbing it to something, she’d never actually held a gun before, so she didn’t really know what to do with the damn thing other than make sure the muzzle was pointed down. Daddy and Bucky had given a ‘gun 101’ speech before they started, but even she knew that bit.
What she hadn’t expected was how just holding the silly thing would make her feel... things. She kept telling herself it wasn’t an actual gun. Hell, it didn’t even look like a real gun. It was just a skinny pipe with a handle, an armrest thingie on the back and a giant pod on the top to hold paintballs. It was even neon orange, which wasn’t a real gun color either. The protective glasses they’d gotten out of a gear bin didn’t fit her quite right either. Clearly they were intended for a grown alpha. Which she wasn’t, but Daddy had said they’d do well enough for now.
She couldn’t help shrinking in on herself a little when Evan, who was at least ten feet away from her, shot at the target downrange. It didn’t even sound like a proper gun. Just muffled popping noises.
“Good,” Daddy said, and tapped at Evan’s back foot gently with a yardstick he’d gotten from somewhere. “Lean back a bit more? There. Let your skeleton do some of the work so you don’t exhaust your core.”
Further down the line at the open air range, Bucky was working with Johnny and Harley. Mary-Anne had opted out saying it was “too hot”, and was camped in the air conditioned cabin on the other side of the acreage with Sue, Ma, and Darcy.
Everyone else (including the rest of the Fantastics) was either at the archery range or the sniper rifle range. Which were apparently different things? Who knew shooting things at pieces of paper could be so complicated?
Pleased with Evan, Daddy wandered back to Peter. “You ready sweetheart?” he asked. It had taken an embarrassing amount of time for her to pick the damn thing up off the folding table.
“I think so,” she said.
“You want some ear protectors?” Daddy asked. There was a set on each of the tables but no-one else was wearing them. “Sound travels not just through your ears, but your bones too. Normal people don’t even notice it, but it can be a bit scary the first few times when you’re like us.”
“I’ll be okay,” Peter said. “These don’t even sound like real guns.”
“The helmets we’ll be using during the skirmishes have protection built in. You want to get used to it now?”
“I said I’m fine Dad,” Peter didn’t quite snap.
“Okay. Now, when you’re ready, you’re going raise it so it’s pointing downrange, and put the butt of the rifle against your shoulder and wait for me.”
Feeling kinda stupid (surely pulling a trigger wasn’t that f*cking hard?) she gamely put the gun up like she’d seen in movies.
“Hold?” Dad said, she froze. “You’re too far over on the shoulder. It shoots in a straight line, honey. You can’t even see down the sight like this.”
She gave him a Look and simply tilted her head over. “See?” she said.
“No.”
“No? But that’s how they do it in the movies,” she complained.
He moved it so that it was practically under her chin. “Now try. The other way would give you a crick. Not only that but the recoil would twist your shoulders if this had any real firepower.”
When you put it like that it made sense. “Okay.”
“Look down the range... finger on the trigger- fire when you’re ready.”
She couldn’t see him because she was looking down the gun, but she could feel him hovering. “You don’t have to hover,” she complained.
He didn’t budge. “I kinda do sweetheart. I have no doubts about your intelligence. But you’ve never done this before and the others have at least had experience with BB guns. I just want to keep you safe.”
Jesus. And she thought Ma was bad. She was fine.
She pulled the trigger.
“Peter?” Daddy called gently.
She blinked. What the hell? Why was she on a roof?
“Peter- sweetheart- can you hear me?” Daddy called from somewhere below her.
She crawled a bit- Jesus, the slope on this f*cking thing- and god she’d forgotten how much she hated textured roofing shingles. They just ate right into her knees and palms and of course she was wearing f*cking shorts today. She peered over the edge to find everyone gathered below her minus the guns.
“What happened?” she asked, beyond confused.
“You’re on the pavilion roof sweetie,” Daddy said gently. “I think the recoil made you panic a bit.”
And now she wanted to sink into the earth.
“It was cool as f*ck though,” Evan said. “You leapfrogged off Steve’s shoulders and straight onto the roof- and I don’t know if you hit it with the paintballs or not but your target is definitely dead now.”
Confused, she looked downrange to see her bright orange rifle sticking out of the hill. It was buried right in the middle of the target silhouette.
“Oh no,” she lamented, covering her mouth with her hands in horror.
“Don’t be embarrassed Princess,” Johnny grinned. “Reed would call this failing successfully. You definitely defended yourself.”
“I gotta sandwich ‘n some Doritos waitin’ on ya,” Harley called. “Come on down. I think the sodas are even still cold.”
“Um...” she eyed the ground doubtfully, which was at least 10 feet away. Six months ago she would have just hopped down with a fancy flip. But now? “I think I need help?”
“What’s wrong? She scared of heights? Do I need to go get her?” Johnny asked.
“She’s broken a lot of bones lately- Harley? You’re the tallest-” Bucky said.
“I gotcha sweetheart-” Harley stood under her with his arms out. It was anticlimactic as she carefully crawled backwards over the edge, and he caught her legs before bringing her the rest of the way down.
“There we go- did ya scrape your knees darlin’?” Harley asked, setting her down on a picnic table under the pavilion.
“Stupid roofing shingles,” she muttered, deeply embarrassed, as Daddy approached with the first aid kit. “Daddy- I have a healing factor,” she fussed.
“Which hasn’t been reliable lately,” Daddy said firmly. “And a bandaid never hurt anyone.”
“Ma’s gonna freak out,” she complained, wincing as he dabbed at the scrapes with an alcohol wipe.
“It weren’t that bad,” Harley said. “Ya didn’t even get confused this time.”
“I didn’t?”
“Nope. Ya threw the gun downrange like two minutes ago,” Harley said.
She wilted with relief. At least she hadn’t thought she’d fallen into a different universe again. “Oh thank god.”
“Those reflexes are gonna be amazing once we get them trained right,” Bucky said, leaning against a nearby pillar. “Taking out the target while also escaping in less than a second?” he whistled. “That’s going to come in handy.”
“Maybe ya need some ninja stars,” Evan teased.
“That’s not a bad thought actually,” Daddy said, putting giant bandaids on her knees. “You should always try to incorporate your natural reflexes, not try to train them out. It’s possible, but you don’t want to find yourself in trouble because you reverted when you’re tired and in a bad spot.”
“Here. Ya need ta eat when you get like this,” Harley said, and presented her with a large sandwich and a family sized bag of chips with a paper plate.
So she ate half the sandwich and picked at the chips while everyone else finished their gun range practice. Daddy made her wear giant ear protectors “so she wouldn’t be stressed”, which made her feel a bit silly even though they definitely worked. Without the random popping noises in the distance (from the rifle range maybe?), she found herself relaxing.
After a bit, Daddy declared everyone ‘good enough’ which she guessed translated roughly to ‘unlikely to accidentally kill themselves’. She sulked a bit as they all climbed back into the UTV.
“I guess I’m not cleared for the paintball guns?” she asked as they bounced their way down the dirt road that led back to the main cabin.
“No sweetheart, you’re not,” Daddy said, not taking his eyes off the dirt road as he drove. “Maybe next time.”
“Don’t be sad. You can spend more time with Tony,” Harley said. “Maybe he can teach ya the gun part names or somethin’.”
“That’s a good idea,” Bucky said. “You can help clean the one you threw.” They had to literally dig it out as the entire barrel had been embedded in the hillside.
“I didn’t mean to,” she pouted.
“It happens,” Bucky shrugged. “But you should always clean your own weapons anyways.”
Ma was there to greet them when they got back to the cabin. “How’d it go?”
“Everyone’s cleared except Peter,” Daddy said.
“What happened?” Ma asked.
“I don’t know. I threw the gun into the hill and hid on the roof,” Peter complained.
“She was on a roof?” Ma demanded.
“Of the pavilion. I think the recoil spooked her and she reacted on instinct,” Daddy said. “She only skinned her knees. I call it a success.”
“You didn’t get confused?” Ma asked, pulling her in for an inspection hug.
“No,” Peter said, beyond over it.
“Well, that’s good. Is the gun at least still in one piece?” Ma asked.
“She buried it halfway into the hill, making a direct hit on the middle of the target paper,” Dad grinned.
“Really? Not bad kiddo,” Ma smiled. “Taking out the target even when you’re panicking is like 90% of the job. Now we just need to keep the gun in your hands and we’ll have it made.”
Peter wasn’t sure about that. She already wasn’t a fan of guns to begin with but now? “What am I gonna do now?” she whined. “Everyone else is gonna be doing the war thing.”
“You can come keep us company,” Sue said, coming out of the cabin behind Ma. “You still have all your fingers and toes?” she asked Johnny sharply.
“Yeah Sue. I’m good!” Johnny called. The boys were already drifting towards the “war room” which was actually a camo canopy tent from Dick’s Sporting Goods with a folding table with a laminated map of the area taped to it.
“Why aren’t you doing it?” Peter asked Sue.
“I’m getting close to my cycle,” Sue said. “And I’m known for being triggered by stress. So I’m playing it safe today.”
Peter made a face. “Shouldn’t you be at home then?” she asked.
Sue raised an eyebrow, and made eye contact with Ma for some reason.
“She was raised by betas,” Ma said, in what sounded like an apology.
“Ma!” Peter protested.
“You shouldn’t question people on how they handle their cycles,” Ma scolded. “Especially not omegas.”
“You said I’d have to stay home when I got close to mine-” she protested hotly.
“You have serious medical issues and are a child with unpredictable cycles,” Ma countered. “She’s a full grown omega who knows what her body can do. Apologize.”
Peter shrank in on herself. “Sorry,” she said.
“It was very rude,” Sue said. “Tony’s right. You shouldn’t comment on how other people handle their cycles.” Peter’s shoulders hunched involuntarily. “Yes omega,” Peter agreed, staring at the floor, mostly to make it stop. She got it already. She’d been an ass and stuck her foot in her mouth or whatever. She’d never mention cycles when Sue was around again. SHE GOT IT. Please let it go. “I’m sorry.”
She could see out of the corner of her eye that they exchanged Looks again. God damn it. She was sorry! She was! She apologized. What the hell else did they want?
“Why don’t you go play some games on your phone,” Ma offered, offering a clear mercy exit to the situation.
“Yes Ma,” Peter said, and fled into the cabin. Only, maybe cabin wasn’t the best word to describe it? Cabins in the woods were normally tiny things that existed for horror movies to happen to.
But this was Ma’s idea of a “cabin”, which meant that it was made of logs on the outside, yes. But it was also two stories tall with enough bedrooms to host a baseball team in crisis as well as a fortified bunker in the basem*nt that could only be accessed via a giant door that reminded Peter of a bank safe from a movie set.
She picked the stairs for her escape, going up to the open landing there and sat in a corner on the floor hugging her knees to recover from her latest social crisis.
Below her, the front door opened and closed.
“Has she always-?” Sue asked.
Peter froze utterly. She hadn’t realized how sound would carry in a floorplan like this. She stopped breathing just in case.
“We’re hoping she’ll outgrow it. She’s only 15 after all,” Ma said back. “But you can see why we’re keeping her out of the media.”
“Ah, poor duckling,” Sue sighed. “I remember those days. Johnny never had that phase-”
“Actually, why don’t you come with me to the kitchen? I don’t know where she’s gone and she has her father’s ears.”
Then they walked off together.
The floor failed to swallow her whole, nor did mole people break through the windows to save her from her suffering. She scrolled tiktok while laying on the carpeted floor for at least twenty minutes before she was able to get up again. And yes, there was a leather couch on the landing, but it was harder to properly angst on a leather couch, so the floor it was.
Even then she still wasn’t completely over it, but exploring the ‘cabin’ promised distraction that didn’t require laying on the floor anymore, so she went with that option.
Most of the doors went to hallways with bedrooms that either had several bunk beds in them or some version of what she could only guess as hotel versions of honeymoon suites? The beds were stupidly big, there was only one of them in the room, and they had attached bathrooms.
At the very end of the first major hallway, there was a serious looking door that Peter could tell by just looking was one of those steel ones. It had a fancy number pad lock on the handle and a palm reader to the side on the wall. It was also ever so slightly ajar.
She stood there, debating with her curiosity for a full minute before the inner cat won, and she pulled it open with her least favorite finger and peered inside.
There were guns inside hanging neatly on racks, and all of them had trigger locks on them, which didn’t really matter because Peter wasn’t about to touch any of them anyway. She squinted at one particularly large one for several seconds before deciding it must be some kind of bazooka maybe? Jesus, guns were stupid and complicated.
She was just about to leave when something on the floor caught her eye. She picked it up. It was a slingshot. Not a classic twig with a rubberband one, but a really nice metal one with an arm brace thing so that your aim wouldn’t be affected when you pulled back super hard on the serious tubing that had a built in small leather pouch. And was that? Holy sh*t, that was a laser sight. On a slingshot.
Who the hell had died and gave Clint a million dollars?
In fact, come to think of it, the little pouch did look like it’d fit a paintball in it perfectly. And Dad had said no to the guns, which was fair. But if she could shoot people without a gun-
Eager to share her discovery, she ran outside, only to find the war tent already empty and all the UTVs gone.
Well sh*t. She sulked as she considered the map. It was a terrain map of the cabin’s acreage with a few markers for boundaries and roads and the various structures on the property. She dug out her phone.
“Jarvis?”
“Yes young master?”
“You have pings on everyone, right?”
“I have the current locations of all pack members during the exercise, yes,” Jarvis said. “How can I help you?”
“Show me on the map? I want to see where Harley is.” He was much more likely to let her sneak in and join him than Daddy or Bucky would be.
“Are you experiencing an emergency?” Jarvis asked, as a pin appeared on a map similar to the paper one on the table.
“No. Where am I?” she was fairly sure she was reading it right- her pin appeared a smidgen to the right of where she’d been expecting it.
She looked at the map and did some mental math. Well, that didn’t look too far from where she was now. She put on a pair of safety glasses because even if she didn’t have a gun, the others did, and wrote a note on a piece of paper on the table.
“Tell Ma I left him a note if he asks-” Peter said, and shoved her back pockets full of paintballs. She couldn’t fit much- f*ck female fashion- so she’d have to go for more of a sniper approach.
Then she headed off.
****
Peter was used to maps. A New York City native, born and bred, she’d cut her teeth on subway maps just to get to school and back. Google Maps had always been a thing, and it always knew which subway to take to get to her destination. And she was fairly poor so she walked a lot. No ubering for this girl. That was for fancy people. And almost anything you wanted was just a few blocks away anyway.
Which meant that she was completely unaware how hills could turn what would have been a simple 15 minute leisurely walk on city pavements graded according to ADA standards into an seemingly endless death march.
And she wasn’t even wearing heels! She was wearing her red sneakers and everything!
And another thing- she’d heard of Mother Nature, sure. She’d thought she’d even visited it a few times when she’d gone to Central Park.
This was... she had no idea what the hell this was, other than definitely illegal and if she owned the place, it would all be burned down and paved over. Her short shorts, perfect for showing off her legs, offered zero protection against the many plants that all apparently hated her and held grudges from something she’d done to them in a previous life.
And the bugs. THE BUGS. Jesus Christ, she was never complaining about doing a stakeout of a warehouse again! Give her incontinent pigeons and cold wet concrete any day of the week. Learning about them in books was completely different from finding them on you or listening to them scream at you up close.
Plus she’d walked into at least two different spiderwebs (one that was larger than anything she’d ever made) and was on the verge of saying ‘f*ck it’, and calling for an emergency evac and just dealing with the teasing for the rest of her life when she finally reached the top of a tiny cliff/hill and spotted them below. She ducked behind a tree and peeked around it.
A giant alpha that had to be Harley was leaning against a tree, idly holding a paintball gun in the ‘down’ position. A leaner, shorter boy stood near him, but he looked more like he didn’t know what he was doing with his gun. She wasn’t sure who he was though- they were both wearing some sort of weird motorcycle helmet that covered their entire face. It was possibly Evan? But he stood like an alpha (if that was even such a thing?), so maybe Johnny?
Between them was a flag. It looked like they were guarding it.
She considered her options. When she’d started this little journey she’d fully intended on joining them and helping them hunt down the others. But that would require walking through more of this cursed ewok jungle.
On the other hand, she could shoot them both, then make Harley give her a piggyback ride back to the cabin as payment for his sins. What the sins were exactly, she wasn’t sure, and honestly she was too tired to care. But she was sure he had some somewhere.
Harley turned to look at something, presenting her his back, and she could not waste this opportunity that had clearly been given to her. Thankfully the laser pointer thing worked because she had forgotten to give it a test spin before she started walking and had no real idea how to aim a slingshot.
“Hey, you’ve got a weird green spot-” was all Johnny managed to get out before Harley let out a yelp as the bright yellow paint very clearly marked the ass portion of his overalls.
“Son of a bitch!” Harley swore while Johnny brought his gun up, but it was already too late. She got him right in the leg.
“Jesus Christ, watch the dick man!” Johnny complained. “That is not in the approved target zone!”
She popped out from behind a tree, and rolled her eyes. “Johnny, that wasn’t even close and you know it.”
They froze, and almost as one, they ripped their helmets off. “Peter!” Harley scolded first. “Yer daddy said you couldn’t have a gun yet!”
“I graciously accept your surrender, by the way,” she said, picking her way to the edge of the little overhang.
“Peter, where is your helmet?” Johnny asked.
She sighed, deeply put upon. “I have a slingshot with a laser on it. I don’t need a gun. And where on earth did you two dorks find those motorcycle helmets anyway? I have the glasses from this morning.”
“Darlin’ your daddy is gonna have a right fit again,” Harley complained. “Ya don’t have a helmet, ya weren’t at the safety briefin’- are you still wearin’ your bootie shorts?”
Peter emerged from the last bit of stupid greenery and posed. “I have trekked through the wilderness and I am still cute,” she bragged. “Unlike you. What are you guys wearing anyway?”
“Cuteness ain’t gonna save ya from the poison oak,” Harley grumbled. “That’s why we’re wearing coveralls.”
“The trees here are poisonous?” she recoiled and eyed the nearest one skeptically, but it made no threatening movements.
“It’s the name of a vine- wait. How come you don’t know this? I thought you were the smart one,” Johnny said. “I specialize in organometallic compounds and dabble in zoonotic genetics. Zoo means animals, not plants. And this?” She waved at the vegetation around her. “I don’t even like looking at it to be honest. It’s all... green.” She made a face.
“Princess, I would be totally impressed if I knew what the hell any of that meant,” Johnny said.
“Anyway. Fact remains. I won-” she ignored their groans of protest. “I WON. Which means you guys get to take me home. I’m bored.”
“Are you bored or lost?” Johnny heckled back.
“I have a phone with Jarvis on it. I can’t be lost. Plus, I’m not the one covered in paint,” Peter gave her best insufferable smile, and struck yet another victory pose because she could and it’d been a while, alright?
“Cheater!” Johnny heckled. “We had to leave ours at the cabin!”
“I wouldn’t have to cheat if certain people didn’t leave me behind-” Peter shot back, and promptly skidded down the embankment on her ass as her foot slipped on a patch of bare dirt. “f*ck!”
The boys surged forward. Johnny got to her first, and held her hand. “You okay baby?”
“f*ck- it hurts- Alpha- it hurts!” Peter panted.
“Where?” Harley asked calmly, running his hands over her legs looking for injuries.
“Cramp- oh god. Jesus- it’s gonna break something this time,” she whined.
“Found it,” Harley said, and matter of factly put her ankle on his shoulder and pressed into a calf muscle with both thumbs.
She swore and squeezed Johnny’s hand. “Muscle cramp?” he asked.
“Happens,” Harley grunted. “Musta pointed her toes while she went down.”
“Heat will help,” Johnny said, “Move your elbow-” he put a hand under Harley’s thumbs and dramatic and wonderful warmth covered her leg.
The noise she made as the muscle released was probably p*rnographic but she couldn’t help it, nor did she care anymore. “Holy f*ck, where have you been literally my entire life?” she asked.
Johnny bent over her with a grin. “What matters is I’m here now, Princess,” he schmoozed and waggled his eyebrows.
She giggled at him as he winked and put a finger to his ear. “Captain, this is the Human Torch. We’ve got a downed civilian at our location,” he said into his comm, and her smile vanished. “We’re gonna head out in just a minute.”
“What?” she sputtered, completely outraged. She’d never been so insulted in her entire life! And she’d been called a number of ethnic slurs while she was in her Spider-Man suit, mainly from people she’d webbed to things. They were all wrong obviously, but it still f*cking hurt her feelings sometimes, especially when she had to look them up.
“We’re supposed to report when we leave,” Johnny said, completely unaware of his impending slow and painful death.
She shook her leg free of them. “Civilian my ass. I’ll have you know I was webbing up bank robbers! I even did a weirdo in a green screen suit and a modified drone thing that he rode like a surfboard! Yeah- he could have been a super villain if he had an actual budget that wasn’t eaten up with all the drones zip tied together! Don’t you EVER call me a civilian!”
“I’m sure you were a wonderful Spider-Person,” Johnny soothed.
WERE? Oh helllll no. She reached over and grabbed her dropped slingshot. “Run,” she growled.
“What?” Johnny said.
“Now darlin’, he didn’t mean it,” Harley tried.
“I said run, fireboy,” she growled, digging a paintball out of her pocket.
“Ya can’t go shootin’ people when you’re upset,” Harley tried.
“He’s my boyfriend and I’ll f*cking shoot him when I want to!” Peter shrieked. Her first shot went wide, and merely winged him on an arm because she forgot to turn the green laser beam back on.
“f*ck!” Johnny got up and started backing up through the underbrush, which was a poor decision in every regard. For starters it slowed him down immensely. “Hey- um. Let’s talk about this.”
“When I catch you I’m gonna tie you to a tree and steal your f*cking pants!” she screeched, and struggled to her feet.
Johnny, the suicidal idiot, kept walking backwards slowly keeping about five feet between them. “Can we do that without shooting me?” he called, his hands up, as she limped grimly after him. “Because I’m kinda cool with that honestly- GOD DAMNIT-” She got him square in the chest.
“NO!” she shrieked.
Harley grabbed her from behind and lifted her clear off her feet. “Darlin’, he don’t have his helmet on,” he said gently, as if restraining people with slingshots was something he did every day. “We don’t want ta take an eye out accidentally on purpose now.”
“LET GO OF ME!” she struggled. “I was out there for a year! A YEAR! I WANTED TO DO ACTUAL KILLER ROBOTS GOD DAMNIT!”
“I know,” Harley soothed, and plucked the slingshot out of her hand and tossed it safely away like she was a small child fighting over an action figure. “I know you’re real mad. But shootin’ him ain’t gonna make yer Daddy give you any missions darlin’.”
“I will kick you,” she bluffed, growling.
“And I will sit on you,” Harley said calmly.
She gave him her very best glare, which totally unphased him.
“I am sorry by the way!” Johnny called, now safely behind some trees.
“You’re letting him get away!” she whined, then switched tactics. “I’ll tie him up and you can shoot him. I know you want to- I see the way you glare at him when you think he’s not looking.”
That at least got a small smile. “I don’t shoot hostages,” he said mildly.
“I’m not a hostage!” Johnny shouted, now the offended party. “But I do think we’re gonna have to work on our safe words Princess-”
“What’s going on?” Daddy demanded, jogging into the tiny clearing, Bucky hot on his heels. “Peter- what are you doing here? Where’s the civilian?”
She wilted. Aw f*ck. “I barely shot them,” she whined. “It’s not my fault they’re such babies-” which was totally the wrong thing to say as Daddy’s face got super serious like when he was about to yell professionally at people.
“I distinctly remember not clearing you for a gun Peter,” Daddy said darkly.
“It wasn’t a gun! It was a slingshot!” she protested hotly.
“You don’t have a helmet-”
“I had the goggles! I think they fell off when I fell down. But I had them!”
“You fell?”
“I’m fine- Harley would you put me down?”
“I don’t think I will,” Harley said mildly, as if discussing the weather. “Cuz you’ll just run when ya start cryin’, and I don’t feel like chasin’ ya.”
“I’m not gonna cry!” Peter protested.
“Sweetheart it’s damn near yer naptime, ya’ve been trompin’ though the woods in yer shortie shorts gettin’ all tore up by god knows what, and ya fell and hurt yerself before ya tried to murder your boyfriend. And now yer Daddy’s upset with ya and I know you didn’t eat that entire sandwich,” Harley scolded gently.
“I wasn’t going to kill-kill him,” she protested weakly. “I was just gonna tie him to a tree for a bit-”
“And what? Use ‘em for target practice?” Harley said. “He called her a civilian-” he explained to a baffled Daddy, who winced.
“Is that what he meant? I thought we’d managed to shoot a journalist again,” Bucky said.
“You’re not a civilian sweetheart,” Daddy soothed.
“Then why can’t I play?” Peter demanded. “I never get to do anything! I’ve been doing it for longer than he has-” she glared into the woods, where Johnny stayed silent.
“You’re on the sick list kid,” Bucky said. “And I know it sucks-”
Daddy’s phone rang. Everyone fell silent as he answered it. “Yes dear?” He listened to the other end and his eyes narrowed at Peter.
sh*t.
“Actually, I have her in front of me,” Daddy said. “She’s alive, but she’s had a bit of an adventure, so you’re gonna have to check her for ticks when we get back.”
“I left a note!” she shouted, desperate to be heard on both ends. “I didn’t just leave! I told Jarvis!”
He listened for a bit, and his eyebrows raised. “You went into the second floor armory?” he asked, suddenly serious again.
“It was open! I didn’t know- I swear I didn’t touch anything- I mean- I found the slingshot on the ground, but that’s not a gun! They sell them at toy stores!”
“Did you lose it in the woods?” Daddy asked.
“Nah, I took it off her. She wouldn’t stop shootin’ Johnny with it,” Harley said calmly. “Should be ‘round here somewhere-”
“Got it,” Bucky picked it up, and looked it over. “I dunno Stevie. Don’t look nuclear powered or broken to me.”
“We found it-” Daddy paused again, nodding. “Uh huh. She says she found it on the floor- uh it’s not too dirty I don’t think? Ah. I see,” Daddy gave her a disappointed Look. “I’ll bring her and it back,” he hung up. “Put her down Harley.”
Harley set her back on her feet. She wasn’t sure she liked it.
“What? It’s a slingshot!” Peter protested. “I swear the door was open- I didn’t touch anything! Not even the cartoon bazooka!”
“Well, it turns out you just stole Clint’s very expensive birthday present,” Daddy scolded.
And now she felt like a piece of sh*t. “Oh no,” she lamented, utterly horrified. “I didn’t mean to!”
“And that’s why you can’t just take things out of the armory,” Daddy said sternly. “If it’s been locked up, it’s been locked up for a reason.”
“Wait a minute. If it was his birthday present... wouldn’t he wanna use it right now?” Harley asked. “Why was it locked up?”
Daddy sighed. “Tony made it. Knowing him, he got caught up with the other omegas and forgot about it until Peter went missing. You can come out now!” he shouted at the woods.
“Is she still mad?” Johnny called. “She’s unarmed,” Bucky called back.
Johnny came out looking determined. “So first of all, you’re an amazing person and I really like you.”
Peter, who was in no way shape or form emotionally ready for that sentence, stared dumbly at him. What the hell was happening right now?
“But I’m a little bit mad that you shot me,” Johnny said. “I really don’t think it was cool. It hurt and I didn’t like it.”
The blank staring continued. In the back of her brain, such thoughts as: “We were literally playing paintball. Isn’t the point shooting people? What is he talking about?” did laps.
“Ya know, I was gonna say somethin’ too,” Harley agreed. “I told her she can’t shoot people when she’s mad like that but I don’t think she heard me.”
WTF? Beyond confused, she looked to Daddy for support, who shook his head at her. “You should listen when people say you’ve hurt them sweetheart.”
Bucky. Surely Bucky-
“You’re not supposed to hit your mate,” Bucky said simply. “You’re supposed to talk it out with your words.”
Right.
So this was clearly another situation where the rules that applied to everyone suddenly no longer applied to her, for reasons that no-one would ever explain without shouting at her for being ‘purposefully ignorant’ or something. And stating calm facts and logic, even in the form of questions, would be ‘arguing’.
“It’s not okay to throw things at me or hit me or stuff like that,” Johnny said.
Ma and Daddy sparred. Or used to? It felt like they hadn’t done much of that lately... maybe because they were mated now? But no, that couldn’t be that. They’d been together for as long as she’d known them? I mean... Darcy and Bucky didn’t spar but she was pregnant. And a civilian. But Johnny wasn’t a civilian anymore, right? So it wasn’t that...
It just didn’t make sense. “Hey let’s go paintballing. We’re all going to shoot each other but only get mad when you do it” wasn’t something that usually happened in the pack. High school, yes. But the pack members were usually much more logical for whatever reason.
But Johnny wasn’t pack. Maybe that was the issue? Or something? But she’d shot Harley. But they weren’t mad about that? Not even Harley? Because Harley was more... pack adjacent than actual pack member? Something? So wouldn’t the rule that she was breaking apply to him too? But it didn’t?
She gave up. Clearly this was just one of those days where literally everything she did was wrong, and she just needed to accept the fact she was an ass and that it was time to be quiet and small and try to go to bed as soon as possible to stop offending people.
So she shrank in on herself and stared at the floor. “I’m sorry alpha,” she said quietly, mostly to make whatever the hell was happening stop. “I won’t do it again.” Or at least she’d do her best to follow whatever the hell the rules were now.
God, she missed Ned. He’d know what was happening and what she did wrong.
The fact that there were several sharp inhales from the men around her told her that she’d somehow f*cked up apologizing too. God damn this day. She shrank harder and tried not to cry. Crying when she was in trouble was manipulative or whatever and would probably get her another lecture.
“f*ck, baby- I’m sorry-” Johnny sputtered. “I didn’t- please don’t cry. I should have talked to you later after your nap or something- sh*t-” he wrapped her in a hug that she badly needed. “It’s okay. I’m not that mad- Jesus you’re freezing.”
Not crying was actually getting harder now that he was hugging her for some reason. “I just want to go lay down,” she admitted, hugging him back. He was warm and smelled good. Not as good as Harley, but it was close enough.
“Nat, please tell me you’re in range with the UTV?” Daddy asked urgently.
“She’s about to have a meltdown in the woods isn’t she?” Johnny asked grimly.
“I don’t have any snacks,” Harley said, agitated. “Iffin’ I’d known she was comin’ I woulda packed something.” “Where the f*ck are we anyway?” Bucky muttered, and pulled out a compass from somewhere.
“Guys. I can just fly her back,” Johnny said, and everyone stopped.
“You fly?” Bucky asked.
“You didn’t notice me doing it when we were in that stupid place with the robots?” Johnny asked.
“I thought it was like super jumping or something- what? It’s not exactly a power you see everyday!” Bucky complained.
“Thought you had to be on fire for your powers to work,” Daddy said.
Johnny shrugged. “I actually choose what I set on fire? I dunno how it works exactly. Reed thinks it’s a mental thing, but I say it’s magic because he makes a face when I say it.”
“I just wanna go home,” Peter complained.
“Okay sweetheart,” Johnny said, and gave Daddy his earpiece. “Let ‘em know I’m coming so they don’t freak out?”
“You sure she’ll be okay?”
“Tech is touchy and maybe I forget it’s there or something? But I’ve carried Sue a couple of times as practice and she was fine. Plus, I wouldn’t be offering if there was a chance I’d hurt her.”
“The house is that way, and watch out for the trees. The nearest fire department is like 20 minutes away,” Bucky said, pointing.
“Got it,” Johnny said. “You ready to go for a ride Princess?” he asked.
Objectively, she knew that she needed to get home and eat. But she hated this. She was f*cking up, and ruining Clint’s entire birthday by making a scene over nothing. She hesitated.
“I promise you’ll be okay,” Johnny murmured. “Let me take care of you before you hurt yourself or something, okay?”
She flushed. “Okay.”
He picked her up in a princess carry. “Close your eyes baby. Sue says it’s kinda weird seeing fire so close and not getting burned.”
She buried her head in his neck. “Ready,” she said.
“Flame on!”
And the only thought she had space for in her head was: was this what it’s like to be warm?
********************
The flight was uneventful and short. The house was farther than he thought it would be, but it was at least easy to spot from the sky since it sat in the middle of an open field.
He landed gracefully, and only teetered forward a little when he did his “Flame off!”. Something about his flames did something to his strength and balance that he still hadn’t quite figured out perfectly.
Sue and Stark surged forward from the covered porch to meet them.
“Carry her inside?” Stark gestured towards the house. “I’ve got a feed set up for her by the couch.”
“Sure,” Johnny said.
“Are you alright?” Sue asked as they walked. “Rogers wasn’t very specific.”
“Everyone’s fine. Just let me put her down first.”
Which sounded like a reasonable plan until he tried to put her down, and she went from princess to stubborn koala, twisting in his arms as he bent over to put her down so her legs went around his waist.
“Sweetheart I love the enthusiasm-” he started. “But it’s not time for that now.”
“Peter, let go of him,” Stark coaxed, and pulled gently on an arm.
She responded with the cutest, least vicious snarl he’d ever heard. “No.” Then she did her level best to apparently burrow into his skin.
“Peter-” Stark scolded.
Peter growled and pointedly inhaled as deeply as possible while also attempting to actively suffocate herself in his neck.
“Peter this isn’t okay-” Stark started again, and pulled on an arm, only this time it took his coverall with it. “And now she’s stuck,” he sighed, and let go. “I’m sorry kid. Either we cut you out of what you’re wearing or we have to wait for her father. He’s the only one who can get her to let go when she’s like this.”
“What do you mean?” Sue demanded.
“She sticks to things. Sometimes she has trouble letting go. Especially when she’s confused-” Stark waved at the current koala situation. “On the really bad days she sticks to the sheets in her sleep, though she hasn’t done that for a while.”
“She’s not hurting me or anything,” Johnny said. “Help me sit down?” Sue held his hand as a sort of counterbalance or something as he sat. “It’s alright Princess. I got you,” he soothed, and pressed his lips to the side of her face. “I can’t tell- is she supposed to be this cold? The doctors say I naturally run hot now.”
“She’s always cold. Sue- get a blanket out of the closet next to the door? I’ll hook up her feeding tube. Once we fix the low blood sugar she’ll come out of it.”
Sue got a thick blanket to cover them and Johnny watched as Stark pressed way too many buttons on a tiny machine before hooking up tubing to the stuff coming out of her nose. Thankfully the couch was a recliner so he could lean back and better distribute her weight.
“I’ve got you,” Johnny murmured, and patted her back. It took only a small bit of concentration to send some warmth her way. She sighed happily and relaxed her grip so she wasn’t hugging him like she was afraid of being dragged off him anymore.
“What happened?” Sue asked.
He explained how she’d ambushed them, how they’d gotten into a small argument and she’d shot him but then Steve had shown up and she got in trouble for the slingshot.
“And then when I told her I didn’t like it when she shot me- she kinda just...” he waved at the situation as a whole. Sometime during his story, she’d started snoring gently.
They tried an arm again, but she was just as stuck as she was before.
Stark sighed from his seat next to him on the couch. “So- just to be clear. Not being shot at sounds like a reasonable ask. I will tell you that she doesn’t really do emotions that well, especially when she’s already upset.”
“I figured that out on my own. I just-” he paused, collecting his thoughts. “She’s like an orphan right? So she was in foster care or whatever. Did the people like... hit her?” He caught Sue’s sudden lemon face. “I can ask that, right?”
“That sounds like something you should ask her yourself,” Sue said carefully.
“As far as I know, her Aunt didn’t hit her, but I have nothing else positive to say about that woman,” Stark said coldly. “Why? What did she do?”
“I just... I walked out. I said, ‘I didn’t like that you shot me. You can’t hit me’ that kind of thing- and I didn’t even raise my voice, but she just...” he trailed off. “She didn’t bare her throat but it felt like it was a close thing.”
Stark rubbed his face, stressed. “It’s called fawning. She gives you what you want to make whatever’s happening stop. Looks like you were lucky today though. Usually she does it, then books it. Think of it like throwing confetti as a distraction.”
“That doesn’t sound healthy-” Sue offered.
“She doesn’t do it on purpose. It’s a trauma response or something to do with instincts. Some people fight, some people freeze- she fawns,” Stark shrugged. “But what matters is if she does it, you need to get her help right away otherwise she can wander off. She did it at school once- she walked all the way to Brooklyn with her phone off. Damn near gave us all heart attacks.
“But the good news is that she doesn’t have a malicious bone in her body. If she hurt you I can guarantee it was an accident, and she was absolutely horrified about it. Which honestly, probably explains the fawning. Between the walking and the not eating and her father and then your argument- she probably just short circuited a bit.”
“Stark-” Sue said, in her gentle ‘you’re about to get told’ voice.
“What?”
“In a healthy relationship, Johnny would learn this when Peter was ready to tell him,” Sue said. “Not because her guardian... talked about her.” She was just the best at the whole ‘I don’t judge, but if I did, I’d totally be judging you’ tone.
Stark stared at her for a moment before chuckling, only stopping when he saw the expression on her face. “Oh wait, you’re serious? Oh. Wow,” He looked between them. “You guys do the therapy thing? Because now that I mention it, I could hear it coming out in the whole ‘don’t hit me’ thing you said-”
“Our parents dying was a difficult time for us, and Johnny was much younger then,” Sue said. “We don’t really go anymore but I try to make sure that we don’t forget what we learned.”
Stark nodded. “I get it. I really do. Um. Just fair warning- therapy isn’t really a thing in the community, and if we do do it, it's under really tight wraps. Maybe it’s different now, but back in the day?” he whistled. “Everyone has a price. Government pressure, money, fame? Being betrayed is um. Kinda a running theme you might say.”
“Gossiping isn’t betrayal?”
“If you’re doing business with us, you need to know things. A call could come in at any minute, and team cohesion on the field is important. Telling you that ‘hey, don’t piss off Wolverine, the man literally cannot die and holds grudges for forever’- it’s not malicious. The less feathers ruffled the better everything works.”
“She’s not in the field-”
Tony waved at Johnny like a showgirl on daytime TV. “See this? If she didn’t do this, I wouldn’t tell you anything. But he’s going to be out in public with her. Harley will be there to help but we’ve found the more eyes the better. I should have done something when she apologized like that to you, but she was verbal so I thought she wasn’t that bad.”
“She didn’t say she was tired,” Johnny said. “But she did say she wanted to lay down.”
“Really? That one’s new... Harley tell you about the tired thing?” Tony asked with narrowed eyes.
“He said I needed to know.” “What about it?” Sue asked. “She only says that when her blood sugar’s low and she’s about to actively crash. As in, fainting or getting mentally confused. And that’s why we talk to each other- you heard that Jarvis? We’ve got a new trigger phrase to look out for.”
“I shall send a memo sir,” a voice said from the ceiling.
“I’m sorry- can I get a glass of water or something?” Johnny asked.
“Oh. Sure. Be right back,” Stark said.
Sue waited until he was out of earshot and held his hand. “You alright?”
“I’m fine.”
“You sure? Because this is - you know I will support you in whatever you choose to do,” Sue said, deeply concerned. She’d said the same when he’d first told her he wanted to be a race car driver, despite the fact Mom and Dad had died in a car crash only a year earlier.
“She called me alpha.”
“I know, you said that-”
“No. I mean- she got hurt and she said ‘help me alpha’.” Johnny swore he could still feel a bit of a rush from it honestly.
Sue bit a lip. “I didn’t even know alphas did that with each other.”
For a split second, Johnny considered telling her the truth. That Peter wasn’t an alpha at all. But it wasn’t his secret to tell. And it didn’t make a difference anyway because if there was one thing he could depend on, it would be Sue being in his corner.
“I told you- she’s the one,” Johnny said. “I was looking at her earlier at the gun range, and the only thought I had was that she was going to give me such beautiful children.”
Sue inhaled sharply. “Johnny-”
“I know, I know. Not now. She needs to do school and stuff first. But when we’re older?” He gently ran fingers through Peter’s hair. “I can see it.”
“Thought you didn’t want kids,” Sue said. “You asked last summer for the vasectomy-”
“I don’t know anymore. I just- she’s it for me.”
“Children are a big decision, remember that.”
Johnny eyed her, then the area that led to where Stark had gone, but there was no sign of him.
“Speaking of- you gonna give me a nephew this time around?” he asked with a dopey grin and a wink.
“Johnny-”
“What? I’m not stupid. I know your time is coming up. I’m not a kid anymore. Or are you going to wait until we’re pregnant to go for it? A cousin litter for them to grow up together? You’ll be pretty old by then though-”
“I’ve told you, you are not a part of that conversation,” Sue said firmly.
“Alright. I’m just saying- would give us some practice. We might just change our minds if it’s too much of a hassle.”
“I don’t know why you’re always so insistent. I know for a fact you barely stand Reed as it is.”
He asked because a baby would make her happy. She always talked about having lots of kids when they were younger. It was always ‘when I leave this house and get mated I’ll have 10 kids’, but then Mom and Dad had died and she never mentioned it anymore. He thought something might happen when Reed came along and she started staying home but so far there had been no little Storms running around getting into all of his stuff.
The powers thing was a good start. She was definitely doing more. But she didn’t seem any happier lately? Maybe the traditional thing was what she wanted? He didn't know.
“And I know that I promised that I wouldn’t say it anymore, but I’m saying it now,” Sue said sternly. “You are moving very fast with this. And you know-”
“ ‘The faster you go, the bigger the wreck’, I know. But-”
“ ‘The speed is the whole point?’,” Sue countered, giving him a knowing look.
“I was gonna say ‘worth it’ but maybe.”
“Just be aware, you’re not just getting the girl. You’re getting her family too. Did you know they’re a pack?”
“I know.”
“Because that is some serious stuff. And I know you’re 18, but- a pack?”
In his lap, Peter shifted. “Cookies?” she mumbled.
Johnny made a frantic cutting hand motion at his neck towards Sue. “Hey baby,” he cooed. “You awake?”
“Pack of oreos?” Peter asked hopefully, inhaling deeply. “You have some?”
He melted. She was just too adorable. “No, but I think we can try to find you some,” he teased. “You feeling better?”
She hummed and stretched to better flatten herself against him like she belonged there, and great, he had a boner now- maybe she wouldn’t notice?
She stopped, then rocked her hips ever so slightly in a way that was definitely deliberate. “You liiike me,” she giggled directly into his ear. She sounded a bit drunk, even though Johnny knew for a fact she hadn’t a drop to drink.
Just f*ck his life. f*ck it sideways. Sue was literally sitting right there, and she was still underage. “I do,” he agreed, striving for neutrality.
“Good. Because I’m gonna kidnap you,” she threatened idly, shamelessly scenting him by pressing her nose against his neck. Was this heaven or hell? He couldn’t decide.
“Really?” he grinned. “What for?”
“To keep my bed warm,” she said. She sounded like she meant it. “I’ll feed you snacks though so it’s okay.”
Jesus. Christ. Hell it was then because he couldn’t touch her like she deserved. “Um-” he wasn’t sure what kind of face he made at Sue, but she visibly and silently fought back her laughter for a second before she could bring herself to say anything.
“Hey Peter,” Sue the literal saint said gently. “I think it’s time to get up now.”
“Hmm?” Peter blinked heavily and peered up at Sue, as if she was just now noticing that she was there before going still. “MA?”
A split second later, Iron Man walked around the corner in one of his mechanical suits, but with the helmet off. It was surprising on a number of levels, but mostly because he would have seriously thought the suit would be heavy enough to shake the ground when he walked, but it didn’t?
Stark stopped when he saw them. “Right. So- important thing- nobody panic. Thor’s coming in hot with something. Jarvis wasn’t really clear about it- something about goats and Santa Claus? I think he’s glitching again, but I couldn’t get a clear visual. Sue? You want to help me, or do you want to head to the bunker with Darcy and Mary-Anne?”
“Where’s Rogers?” Sue demanded.
“Everyone’s heading back but I don’t know if they’ll get here before Thor does. On the one hand, it’s Thor, so I doubt he won’t be able to control whatever it is. On the other hand, he’s coming here because we weren’t at the Tower so it’s definitely something.”
“I can help,” Johnny said.
“Last time I checked, you have my daughter stuck to you. So you need to head downstairs,” Stark said.
“Ma! You can’t be in your suit!” Peter shouted, almost directly into Johnny’s ear. “Your heart!”
“I’ll be fine-” Stark argued.
“The doctors said you can’t wear it anymore-”
“It’s just until he gets here, which is 10 minutes at most. 10 minutes won’t kill me.”
“Daddy’s gonna be mad! You can’t do this!”
Sue took the little backpack Peter’s feeder was in off the medical stand and handed it Johnny. “You’re gonna have to help me up, I think she’s still stuck,” he said.
“I’m the adult, and you are the child. So you don’t get to have a say in this. Johnny- please take my daughter downstairs-” Stark continued.
“HO THE HOUSE!” The doors to the outside swung open and a giant blonde man in a cape walked in.
“Thor? You look- you look well,” Stark said. “What’s the emergency?”
The f*cking emergency followed him in- as the largest pitbull Johnny had ever seen silently walked in complete with glowing red eyes.
“Flame on!” Johnny was in the air, with Peter in his arms a split second later.
Everyone stopped to stare at him.
“You okay there buddy? It’s just Thor-” Stark said.
“Are you blind? Do you guys not see that f*cking thing?” Johnny demanded. He was as high as the two story vaulted ceilings would let him go. “It’s right behind him!”
“I think it might be a horse dog hybrid or something?” Peter asked, safe in her princess carry.
Everyone turned to look at the “dog”.
“Uh-” Sue backed up a step.
“Be not afraid. Thori1 is a good hel-hound,” Thor said, putting a hand on the dog’s head. It came well above the man’s waist. “He has never maimed anyone by accident.”
“I gotta be honest- the glowing eyes are not filling me with confidence here, PointBreak,” Stark said. “And did you say hellhound?”
“He breathes fire when he’s excited, so I try to keep him outside,” Thor said.
“Bad guys?” the f*cking dog said, as it casually sniffed Thor’s crotch. “Murder now?”
Stark’s helmet appeared out of nowhere. “Thor?”
“Be at ease, Thori. They are friends. We’ve talked about this,” Thor said, and patted the dog’s hunches. “We don’t murder friends, do we?”
The dog huffed, as if it were disappointed. “Thori good dog. No murder friends.”
“Good. I do apologize Stark, for the intrusion. However, I am in a bit of a bind. My mother has decided that my goats are taking up too much room in the stable if I am not living there.”
“Goats?” Sue asked.
“They are outside. When I was younger, they pulled my chariot. I do have some friends I could ask to keep them long term, but it is faster if I travel with Mjolnir.”
“And the dog?” Stark asked.
“He is very fond of them. Thori likes to keep them safe, don’t you Thori?” Thor didn’t quite coo, but it was close, and rubbed the dog’s head, making his ears flop.
“Thori love goats. They will taste good when they die,” Thori said.
Thor hummed, apparently unbothered by the statement. “I believe my mother thinks that I will return home if I am suitably burdened.”
“Oh. Well, we can’t have that,” Stark said, and the helmet came down. “Just so we’re clear here- I do have children on the property.”
“They will be safe. Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder are enjoying your grass at the moment. I hope that will not be an issue.”
“Actually, I hire goats to come out a couple of times a year to eat the ivy,” Stark said. “As long as they’re not allergic to poison oak, we should be good.”
“I shall warn them to be wary of the trees,” Thor agreed.
“Johnny? I think you can come down now,” Sue called.
Johnny tentatively landed. “Flame off.”
“Jarvis, tell Steve he can walk. Thor just had some goats he needs us to babysit,” Stark said.
“Can I pet him?” Peter asked, staring at the dog, still in Johnny’s arms. Johnny clutched her a little harder. The dog was huge, and the glowing eyes reminded him a little too much of Cujo.
“He likes to play fetch,” Thor said.
“FETCH?” Thori demanded, and his tail went nuts to the point he was also wagging his butt. “Fetch now?!?”
“Sir, the Captain reports they are returning for lunch,” the ceiling said.
“Peter, there’s tennis balls here somewhere. Why don’t you and Johnny go play for a bit while I get this off before Steve comes back,” Stark said. “And let the girls out of the basem*nt Jarvis!”
*****************
Johnny nailed the tennis ball with the baseball bat, driving it deep into the meadow that surrounded the cabin.
Thori raced after it, barking excitedly, leaking sparks from his mouth. The good news was that Stark had zoned lawn sprinklers, and the dog was even more excited to run through them after the ball. He even stopped a few times to bite at the water streams before remembering the ball and going back after it.
Johnny leaned the bat against Harley’s lawn chair. “Your turn.”
“Yeah,” Harley agreed absently, typing something on his phone.
Thus relieved of Thori duties, Johnny took a moment to take it all in. It had somehow turned into a perfect day. The sky was a deep blue, there was a small breeze to keep you from getting too hot and the scent of cooking meat and smoke filled the air.
The adults had naturally segregated. The older men including Ben, gathered around the grill, talking sh*t and offering conflicting advice on the best way to barbecue, season, turn and poke the meat. It made his heart swell seeing so many people treating him like he was normal.
At least, most of the men had gathered. Stark and Reed were in a low conversation about the house. They’d been pacing around a particular bit of the cabin’s foundation and a tiny crack there for at least the last fifteen minutes.
The women sat in low sitting sun chairs in the partial shade of the camo canopy that had once covered the map area. Steve and Bucky had moved it closer to the house for them. The older ones were discussing something about babies, while Sue had taken it upon herself to teach Peter and Mary-Anne how to make flower crowns from the daisy field they’d found growing on the other side of the house.
Peter put her flowers down as Thori ran up to her, and dropped the ball in her lap.
“Who’s a good boy? Who’s a good boy?” Peter squealed and rubbed Thori’s face with her hands. The way she was sitting the dog was taller than she was.
“Thori good boy!” Thori agreed.
“Yes you are!” Peter agreed, and Thori’s tail threatened to take the entire dog airborne.
Somewhere behind Johnny, there was a small crash as another small tree went down, but he didn’t pay it any attention. By unspoken mutual agreement, everyone was pretending that the two giant almost elephant sized goats didn’t exist. They were currently working on taking the treeline back by almost 4 feet- which, good for them. Or something. They reminded Johnny of dinosaurs on a netflix documentary, and as Steve had pointed out, some things are best left unbothered.
How Stark had managed to distract Reed with foundation issues, Johnny had no idea, but even he knew not to ask too much about miracles while they were happening.
Harley hit another ball deep into the meadow.
“Oh! There’s a ball! Go get it! GO GET IT!” Peter hyped. The dog took off barking.
God, she was radiant. She sat in the sun in her little tube top and almost indecent shorts and smiled at him when she saw him looking at her. It made his heart flip in his chest.
He liked looking at her. Her lean powerful legs, flat stomach and perfect small round breasts called directly to both his soul and his dick. The only thing missing was his mating bite on her neck and a small pup that looked just like him in her lap.
Thank god the doctors had said he was too young for the vasectomy- never in his life was he more grateful for being told ‘no’.
Which was a bit strange, he wasn’t going to lie. The first time it had occurred to him, he’d spent the rest of the day wondering what the hell was wrong with him. If someone had told himself six months ago that he’d be daydreaming about having pups he’d have laughed himself sick.
But it turned out that all the silly old alphas had been right. ‘One day when you’re older’ and ‘When you see her, you’ll know.’ Who knew?
He walked over with a bit of an exaggerated swagger because she was watching him now. “Beautiful day isn’t it?” he said.
“The sun is so much nicer here, and I don’t know why,” Peter said. “Maybe it’s because we’re closer to it in the Tower? But I wouldn’t think a few hundred feet would make that much difference when it’s millions of miles away.”
God, she was smart. He loved that about her too. If he could get her to know sh*t about engines they might actually make that flying car he’d been threatening Reed with for years a reality.
He hummed in agreement. “Like the view even better though,” he said, and pointedly leered at her.
It took her a second to catch his meaning and she blushed a beautiful pink all the way down her chest. He purposefully held eye contact until she looked down- beautiful. He liked that about her too. So different from the usual models he went for that were so full of themselves. It was almost like he was the first man to ever pay attention to her. And maybe he was.
Good.
He wasn’t normally possessive, but he liked that she didn’t have any baggage from problematic exes like everyone else in the industry did. It was refreshing.
“Johnny,” she complained, but her tone told him she liked it.
“Just something about this landscape,” Johnny continued grinning, pointedly staring at her. “Can’t put my finger on it.”
She blushed even deeper.
“Oh my god, don’t tell me you’re falling for that!” Mary-Anne heckled and threw a flower at him. “That’s like basic entry level flirting.”
“Don’t be such a hater!” Peter complained. “Maybe if you’re nice to him he’ll introduce you to his friends.”
Ah. Friends. Most of them had left after NASCAR had cracked down and he couldn’t drink with them anymore. The rest were fine for a good time, but introducing omegas? Nevermind omega friends of Peter? Hard pass.
“I really wouldn’t recommend them,” Johnny said. “This isn’t really their scene. I noticed there’s no booze here.”
“No drinking when Tony’s around,” Darcy said firmly. “I don’t know what you guys get up to on Harley’s floor, but nothing in the common areas, understand?”
“Harley doesn’t drink either,” Mary-Anne said. “Won’t have it in the house.”
“That’s good. It’s bad for your brain,” Sue said.
“What is that?” Peter asked, staring way too hard at his shorts.
Did he have a boner? He looked down just in case, but didn’t see one. “What?”
“Come here- something on your leg.”
Johnny obediently stepped closer and Mary-Anne leaned over to join in the inspection.
“Did you get mustard on you or something?” Peter asked, running fingers down Johnny’s bare thigh just under his shorts.
sh*t.
“Umm,” Johnny stood frozen, unable to move even if he wanted to.
“Looks like a bruise to me,” Mary-Anne said, lifting her shades and squinting at his crotch.
Sad puppies. Sad puppies.
“Sue? Johnny has something on his leg!” Peter tattled.
“What is it?” Sue got up to wander over, which was great because his sister looking at him like he was five was an instant boner killer.
“It’s nothing,” Johnny protested as Sue lifted his shorts to reveal a nasty round mark that was well on its way to being black.
“What on earth did you do?” Peter asked, utterly aghast. “It’s round.”
“Did you fall on something in the woods?” Sue asked.
“Looks like a paintball bruise,” Darcy said.
“Paintball- oh my god! Did I do that?” Peter demanded.
“It’s from paintball,” Johnny said, swatting Sue’s hand away. “It’s fine.”
“Are you serious right now? Did I throw it too hard?” Peter fussed. “Oh god- I got your chest too-” her hands reached for his shirt hem, and he intercepted them.
“It’s fine baby,” Johnny soothed, and sat in the grass next to her. “It’ll go away in a few days.”
“I’m sorry-” Peter was near tears. “I had no idea it would hurt. I thought they were like water balloons but with paint or something!”
“They are, but they’re in a hard shell thing,” Johnny pointed out patiently. “But it’s fine. It’s not that bad.”
“I said I was gonna use you for target practice!”
“What’s goin’ on?” Harley ambled over.
“I hurt Johnny with the paintballs!” Peter babbled. Actual real tears were coming out now. It broke Johnny’s heart to see it.
“I’ll go see if they have any hamburgers done yet,” Darcy said.
“No, you sit. I’ll go,” Mary-Anne said, nimbly getting to her feet from the low chair and jogging her way over to the grill.
“She needs her nap,” Harley said.
“It’s alright,” Sue hastily offered Peter a kleenex from her pocket. “He’s not seriously hurt.”
As if that wasn't enough, Thori wandered over. “Peter sad?” the dog demanded.
“I’m sorry,” Peter sniffled miserably and fanned her face. “I can’t stop.”
“Thori murder,” Thori growled. “Who make Peter cry?”
“No- no murderin’,” Harley scolded. “She’s just got some big feelin’s today.”
That backfired because she started sobbing. “I can’t he-help it!” she hiccuped.
“I got her,” Harley said, and Sue moved out of the way so he could squeeze in next to her on her chair. It was a tight fit, and she ended up mainly on his lap. “I gotcha,” he soothed, and patted on her back and tucked her head into his neck.
And Johnny knew that he was her step-brother. Knew that he was just helping. But it didn’t stop his hackles going up. She was his mate. He should be the one holding her, not him, his instincts insisted.
He stepped on them. This was a family gathering not a bar.
Next time he’d have to move a little faster, that's all.
“Shhh... it’s alright. No-one’s mad at ya,” Harley soothed. His hand was decidedly very low on her back in Johnny’s opinion.
Thori whined and put his giant slobbering head on their laps.
“I’m okay,” Peter said not at all convincingly, and patted his head.
Did it make him a bad person that he was actually kinda offended that she calmed down in less than two minutes in her brother’s lap?
Step-brother his brain insisted. Which was... hmm. He didn’t know too much about the family dynamic, come to think of it. Other than Stark was right. Her shooting him hadn’t been a serious attempt to hurt him out of anger. She’d missed the safety briefing and it looked like she hadn’t played before.
It was a relief honestly. He thought there might be something there he’d have to watch out for but it was all just a misunderstanding. Still...
He later cornered Darcy near the condiment table.
“So, you’re Peter’s aunt?” he tried. She looked around, noticed that they were as alone as it was possible to be at a cookout and grinned at him. “You looking for dirt?”
“More like a guidebook?”
“You’re gonna have to be more specific or we’re gonna be here all day,” Darcy said, carefully piling her burger high with onions and pickles.
“Harley.”
Darcy hummed as if he’d asked a deep question. “So, he’s Tony’s son. Turns out he had a fling with a prostitute in Tennessee and...” she frowned. “She didn’t tell him? Something? Whatever. Harley grew up without Tony. Then there was that meth lab explosion- don’t look like that. His little sister was kidnapped or something and he was rescuing her- and the FBI got involved and Tony got him shipped up here.”
“I feel like I would have heard about that somewhere.”
“Oh, I’m sure you did. The FBI raid on the omega traffickers was because of his case.”
Light dawned. He had heard of it. “Really?”
She hummed.
“So... that was really recent then.”
Darcy snorted. “Oh, you don’t know the half of it. From what I gather everything was nice and quiet until April. Then Bucky and I got together, and Thor showed up, and Harley got pulled in. Not to mention Peter being so sick. It’s been a hell of a year.”
A bad feeling formed in his stomach.
“So, they only met a few months ago?”
“Who?”
“Peter and Harley?”
Darcy’s grinned widened. “Jealous?”
He narrowed his eyes at her. “Should I be?”
“Rumor has it that he’s gay. Of course, you can’t always tell these days.”
Johnny whipped to stare at Harley. Really? “So him and Evan then?”
“Nope. Evan is his own man. Harley is just chronically single. Apparently he went to school and worked like 20 jobs to make sure his mom and his sisters had food on the table.”
“What college does he go to?”
“He hasn’t started yet. I think you’re older than him by like a year.”
Huh. He’d thought for sure the man was at least 25. He certainly was built like it.
“But he has been a real help with Peter. No-one can get her to calm down faster, not even Steve.”
Johnny watched as Harley handed Peter something off his plate. She was still tucked under his chin, and had been for the last twenty minutes. No-one had protested this.
“Sisters?” Johnny asked.
“He’s got two half ones in Tennessee. One of them’s a couple of years younger than Peter, the other is a baby. He’s going to bring them and his mother up to New York this summer.”
Two sisters. Plus Mary-Anne. Plus Peter....
“Sounds like he has quite a girl collection,” he joked.
She laughed. “He does, doesn't he? Tony says if he gets anymore he’ll make up a ‘Harley’s Harem’ sign for his apartment.”
“Aren’t they all basically his sisters though?”
“That’s the joke kid,” Darcy said.
Riiight. He’d been in racing circles for years. Hung out with all sorts of crazy, irresponsible alphas. He’d learned the hard way early on that those sorts of jokes were never totally baseless. They always hinted at some sort of hidden truth.
“His sisters are all omegas?” Johnny asked. What the joke was hinting at... he wasn’t entirely sure. Maybe that he liked his omegas young? But one of them was a literal baby. Surely it wasn’t that.
“The baby we don’t know obviously. But the other one is. Why?”
It didn’t sit right for some reason. Obviously you can’t control if your mom gives you sisters or brothers but...
He watched as Peter happily munched on her snack, still firmly in Harley’s lap. If it had been him and Sue, he would have definitely moved on by now. Maybe it was because she was a girl?
But even if it was reversed- if Johnny was somehow the older one, he would have kicked Sue off ages ago. Come to think of it, she would have never sat in his lap in the first place.
Something was off. Something he didn’t quite dare put a finger on.
“No reason,” Johnny said, and gave her a sunny smile. “Thanks.”
It was something he was going to have to keep an eye on, that’s for sure. Peter was too young and obviously inexperienced to know how to deal with this sort of sh*t.
Then again, this was the Avengers after all. Would they really be hiding a person like that in their midst?
But hadn’t people said the same about the priests?
He’d talk to Sue later. She was an expert on vibes, and would not only take him seriously but would tell him straight up if he was wrong or not.
But his gut told him that something was wrong.
