Peter and Tony: A much needed moment: backdated to after the event

[hashtagparkerluck]

Offhand, Peter had to say that the night sucked. He ate it so many times and he's pretty sure he has some pretty serious bruising somewhere and halfway healed busted lip. His hands are also bound together with the webbing from exploding webshooters. What caused them to explode? Did he hit them too hard? Overload them maybe?

Just another day in December he really would like to go home and forget about forever. But hey, he saw Santa Claus tonight so that was something. He supposes. After everything's calmed down for the most part Peter just follows Tony out of the mall-store thing. He can't web himself home like this and even if he waited the two hours (which he considered) his webshooters would still be broken.

Shelob's scuttling along behind him and Peter's head is down, just staring at mess of webbing currently encasing his wrists as he puts one foot in front of the other. Tonight was definitely not Spider-Man's finest hour.

"Uh..." He finally chances speaking. "Is there any way we can just not talk about what happened tonight?"

Comments

[hashtagparkerluck]

"I don't know." Peter shrugged as he just kept walking, knowing that he knew exactly what had happened. "And I wouldn't say that I've been bottling it up exactly." He lied. "I've just been dealing with some stuff. Alone. Because I want to deal with it alone." Or not deal with it at all, whichever.

[inadvertentdadfigure]

"Some would call that bottling it up. You haven't been doing well even in your spider... thing." said Tony.

"C'mon kid. What's bugging you?"

I am so late. whoops.

[hashtagparkerluck]

Peter just glances down at Shelob to see what she thought, even though he knew she'd probably encourage him to talk to Tony but that's not nearly as easy as some people think because he does not want to have an emotional break down in front of his mentor. So course, that means he goes on the defensive.

"Nothing." He nearly snaps, Shelob frowning at him for it. "December's just a bad month for me, that's all. I don't care of everyone else loves it-I'm not trying to say they shouldn't but for me it sucks."

Re: I am so late. whoops.

[inadvertentdadfigure]

"Look, kid. December's no picnic for me either." said Tony in a more softer manner. "Bad memories for me too. My mom died during December. Dad too. Pepper almost got killed during December. On Christmas even. It was a bad time all around."

"But you know what?" said Tony, pulling the door to the truck open. "I got over it. Pushed through it. Worked my way through my trauma, and learned from my mistakes. And I'm still standing. There's more to life than being upset when a day comes. Sure you're allowed to be upset. But being upset, isn't the same as being upset because you're determined to being upset."

[hashtagparkerluck]

Peter stops as they make it to the truck, just considering what Tony was saying. And yeah, he knew that-at least the part about Tony's parents but he never really thought about it much. Besides there was a huge difference there-

"I'm not trying to be upset-it's just-I mean, I don't-I didn't mean-" He stammers and then sucks in a big breath of air before he lets the words that have been haunting him for so long come out. "What happened to Uncle Ben was my fault."

He can feel Shelob watching him and wishes she wouldn't. His nerves are starting to build, and his breathing feels a little uneven. He hasn't even told Aunt May that part.

"I mean-it's not like I-I just-I didn't know it would happen but uh... there was this guy and-and he was robbing a store and like the store owner called for help but I just-I didn't-I just told him it wasn't my job because I was mad-you know, and confused 'cause it was like a week after I got my powers so everything was just so confusing."

[inadvertentdadfigure]

"Believe me I know a lot about being powerless and having powers." said Tony. He let Peter get into the car but he didn't start it, as he let him settle into the seat.

"You know... when my mom died, it was like the end of the world. I blamed myself, blamed a lot of things, blamed my dad for taking her out on that road that night, blamed the car crash, blamed all of it. Most importantly, blamed myself for not showing my mom and dad a little more love that Christmas when they went out that evening. I was a real piece of work. Rude... sullen... and then I took over the company, worked myself up from my dad's ashes, built a company on the bones of people's lives."

Tony removed EDITH from his face, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "And then... boom. Just like that, got the creeping death stuck in my chest. I was a dead man walking. Nothing but a... magnet? And a couple of centimeters of shrapnel from digging into my heart and ending it all. So? I tried to escape... and I built, tried, and lost the first friend I had in the process. I still remember him running out of the cave, swinging that Stark Industries assault rifle like it was a pinata god..."

Tony heaved a shuddering sigh. "The point is Peter... I built my legacy on bones. You built yours... on good things. Real solid, good foundations, good lessons your uncle, your aunt, Happy, everyone gave you. Me? I gave you a suit, and apparently half my company with it. I'm nothing. What you take away is that you can work through December. It's a month that shouldn't drag YOU down, because you're worth more than moping about it."

[hashtagparkerluck]

On some level, Peter really does appreciate that Tony is sharing all this with him-and he'd argue against anyone until he was blue in the face if they tried to say Mr Stark deserved any of that blame. He just lets his Mentor talk, trying to draw parallel lines as he gets into the car and buckles his seat belt in. Shelob got in and settle on Peter's lap, gently patting him with her leg.

"No, Mr Stark, You don't get it. It was my fault. It really-really was my fault-the guy that was robbing the store? The one I could have stopped? Was the same man that shot Uncle Ben!" He reveals. "Just.. the next night. Aunt May would still have her husband if I had just-" His voice breaks and he looks up at the ceiling. "All I had to do was just... trip him or something... but I said it wasn't my job. So, So I made it my job, you know? With great power must also come great responsibly."

[inadvertentdadfigure]

What a mood.

In the silence, Tony replied simply, "Bucky shot my mom."

"I beat up Cap for it. Took his shield. Told him he didn't deserve my father's respect. Told him Bucky killed my mom and I hated him for keeping this from me. He took my mom away and I hated him for it."

"I still have the cell phone to call Steve. I might have forgiven him for whatever amazing thing got us to work together in the future, but right now... god. Right now... I'm still mad at his best friend for taking my mom away from me. But you know what hurts me more than that? Is the blame I have for myself, for what I could have done in that moment when I fought Steve and Bucky."

Tony reached into his pocket and pulled out the old cell phone, checking it. "Huh... still got reception here. I had great power once, I had everything. Then I fell from grace. I haven't gotten up since kid. The Mr. Stark you know and the world carves a million times into the walls of the world? Who is that man? I don't know what great power is, or great responsibility. If anything... you do. You wouldn't be burdened with it."

[hashtagparkerluck]

Peter's listening, he is, he just has his hands covering his face. There are wet, hot tears pooling in his eyes and threatening to drip down his cheeks and he doesn't really want Tony Stark to see him crying like this. He sucks in a breath and then Tony speaks again, dropping a bomb of his own and Peter sits up, looking up at his mentor with red, puffy eyes and wet cheeks.

He doesn't really know what to do with this information. Captain America's best friend killed Tony Stark's mom? He's a sort of deep ache in his heart because he knows exactly what it feels like to lose parent to murder. Uncle Ben might not have been his dad-but he was as close to one as Peter could get.

"I don't-I don't think anyone could blame you for that, Mr Stark. I mean-She was your mother. And-I didn't really know mine-I can barely remember her but if I found out that someone had-" He swallows because this is just an all around hard subject.

"It's um.. a thing my dad used to say, apparently. Uncle Ben told me-he used to say it. And I kinda picked it up too, now. But all I've been able to think about is how I could've stopped that guy-if I just tripped him or-or something-but I didn't. And it's my fault Aunt May's alone. That she's going to be alone on Christmas-the same month her husband-" He lets out a sigh leans back in the chair again.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry if I've been moody I just... really miss Uncle Ben."

[inadvertentdadfigure]

"I do too kid. I miss my mom every Christmas. Starting to miss my dad too to be honest. And with Pepper, I thought things were going to look up for us. We're having a baby, but I'm not going to be able to see it happen since we're stuck here."

Tony wiped his eyes as well. "We all miss who we love. And you're right, great power, great responsibility. But there comes a time when you have to ask yourself Peter: when does it become Great Responsibility, and you're just punishing yourself for inaction? Me? I punished myself for inaction for several years, got into bad times, drank a lot, built a literal war machine to sell to apparently so many terrorists over the years... and then I punched out Steve's best friend in anger and called Rogers the worst friend I ever had."

"You're allowed to be moody on Christmas. But at least let me try to make it a good one for you, in this place while I'm still here for you. Okay?"

[hashtagparkerluck]

Peter just watches Tony for a long moment, considering that comment about blaming himself for inaction. But if could have done something and didn't, then didn't that make it his fault? His mind flashes back to a particularly unpleasant memory and he quickly opts to think about something. If Mr Stark know all the things Peter blamed himself for he'd probably insist on therapy or something. Do they even have that in this 'all you need is faith, trust and friendship' place?

"You know I used to love Christmas. That and Halloween were my favorites-mostly just because of the candy. We never really had a big Christmas but I'd always get at least one new book and a bunch of candy." He states, not really sure why he's remembering that now. But Mr Stark wants this to be a good Christmas for him. And Peter decides that he can at least do the man the courtesy of trying.

"Okay. Okay, Mr Stark. But uh.. don't over do it?" He says mainly because he knows that's probably what Aunt May would say. "I really don't need much."