Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was the final battle, and we were going to win this fight against Thanos. Right?

I mean Mr.Stark is telling me that we’ll win, so that means we’re going to. Plus everyone seems hopeful that we’re going to win.

And after we win I promised Ned that we could finish a lego set we were working on, or me and MJ could finally finish that project we’ve been holding off on.

—————————————

They’re gone. Thanos won, we lost. They’re disappearing, turning to dust.

The world felt like it was slipping away, melting into a swirl of colors and sounds I couldn’t quite grasp. My legs felt like they were made of lead, unable to hold me up. I was sinking, but not into the ground. It was more like I was drifting into a void, a place where everything felt cold and distant.

“Mr. Stark?” I called out, but my voice sounded hollow, swallowed by the chaos around me. My suit felt heavy, suffocating, as if it were pulling me down. I looked around, trying to see through the haze. There was chaos everywhere—fights, explosions, and people I cared about, all struggling.

I could barely make out Tony Stark’s face through the blur. His eyes were wide, filled with a mix of shock and fear. “I’m sorry, kid,” he said, but his words were distorted, like they were coming from underwater.

My breathing was getting harder, each inhale feeling like I was dragging air through a thick fog. My hands gripped the edges of my suit, but they felt numb. I wanted to say something, anything to comfort him, to tell him I was okay, but my throat was tight, and no sound came out.

I glanced down, seeing the cracks in my suit and the fading light of my web shooters. Everything was slipping through my fingers, like grains of sand in the wind. The world was growing darker, the edges of my vision blurring more with each passing second.

I tried to reach out, hoping someone would grab my hand and pull me back, but the strength was draining from me. My vision was narrowing, the faces around me becoming indistinct shapes. I could feel myself fading, drifting away into a numb void.

“Mr. Stark…” My voice was a mere whisper now, barely audible even to myself. I could barely see his face anymore, but I felt his presence—a beacon in the overwhelming darkness. I wanted to say more, to tell him I was grateful, that I loved him like a father, but the words wouldn’t come.

As the light dimmed, and the pain began to recede, I took one last, shuddering breath, letting go of everything I was holding on to. The last thing I remember was the sensation of weightlessness, the sensation of falling but without fear.

I felt the atoms in my body disappearing as the darkness closed in, and I let it.

—————————————

As I regain consciousness, I realize two things, one i'm alive, the second being that i’m not on planet titan anymore, but instead in a glass tube filled with a green liquid.

Ok Peter this isn’t the weirdest thing that’s happened to you, you got this.

I try to take a breath but the green liquid quickly fills my lungs. It was getting hard to think, I needed to get out.

I bang against the glass. The tube shudders but still won’t shatter. A mix of panic and desperation washes over me.

Another desperate punch shatters a larger section of the glass. The green liquid erupts in a chaotic splash, cascading out in a wave. Peter forces his way through the shards of glass, pulling himself out of the wreckage. He gasps for fresh air but only coughs out the green liquid, drenched in the viscous green substance. His clothes cling to him, heavy with the liquid.

As the last of the liquid drains away, Peter takes a moment to steady himself, breathing slowing. He surveys the laboratory, now filled with the eerie silence that follows the storm. With a determined look, Peter starts to move toward the door, leaving behind the shattered remnants of the tube.

Chapter Text

It was bright, not as bright as New York usually is but it was bright compared to the room I was just in.

Welp, I'm drenched.

I wonder if they’re any shops nearby where I could buy some clothes. They probably wouldn’t even let me in with how I look. I guess this is it, I'll just walk down this alleyway until something happens.

Huh. A dumpster I wonder what's in it? Bazinga! Clothes!

'Peter there is no way you just said “Bazinga”.'

Who said that.. Mr.Strange???

…

So maybe i’m going crazy

Well, I'm going to grab some clothes to wear.  Hey they have my size in clothes, no shoes though. Well now I have to get dressed in an alley… Damn it

'Watch your language Peter.'

MISS WANDA???

Well anyways. Now that I'm dressed, I wonder if that dumpster has shoes?

Huh, so no shoes but I do see my spidey suit. MY SPIDEY SUIT? Let me try it on real quick.

Why is it so big on me?

'Wonder why.'

Shut up Bucky. Wait. Mr.Barnes?? I think I'm losing my mind. Wonder who I'm going to hear next.

“Hey Karen…?” I managed to croak out, without coughing up the green liquid. So that’s a win.

“Yes Peter?” Karen said, she sounded a little glitchy but a win is a win!

“Hey karen! Uhh could you connect to Stark satellites real quick, please?” I asked hoping she was able to.

“Of course Peter, give me a second” Karen said, she sounded unsure of if she could, but I believed in her. “Peter, it seems I am unable to connect to any Stark satellites at this moment. They seem to not exist here.”

What. They don’t exist here? How?

“Well that's ok Karen. Uhh could you compact it into something smaller please?” Maybe headphones would be nice.

“Of course Peter, would headphones be ok?”

“Yeah! That would be amazing Karen!” I said before I could feel the nanobots shifting into headphones in my hands.

“Now let's find a library!” I say as I put on the headphones.

—————————————

I’ve been walking for hours…

'It's been like 10 minutes.'

Shut up an anonymous voice that sounds like Mr.Sam Wilson.

After another hour (a minute) I finally found a library. It’s getting dark. I wonder if they’re still open.

As I opened the door I realized that it seems a little taller than most doors are. And it seems heavy? Huh? That’s odd.

When I walk in I see book shelves, they seem normal but taller than what i’m used to. Did everything grow? There is also a red headed lady sitting at a desk in the front. 

“Uhh does this library have any computers?” I asked and she just seemed to stare at me?

“Oh, yes we do! They’re right over there” She says while blinking out of a trace before pointing over to the left. “And call me Barbara.” She finishes with a smile. 

“Thanks Ms.Barbara!” I say before walking over to the computers and sitting at the one where she hopefully couldn’t see my screen. I wonder if she noticed I wasn’t wearing any shoes?

—————————————

“Let’s get to googling” I mumble after I power on the computer.

Avengers

No results.

Huh?

Spider-Man

No results.

What? That can’t be right?

Tony Stark

No results.

Well no results besides a few facebook accounts, but none where his old account.

'Does the child not know?'

Mr.Loki???

Peter Parker

No results

… Do I not exist here?

Where am I?

Current Location

Gotham City, New Jersey 

New Jersey. Out of all places, I'm in New Jersey. This is the worst thing that has ever happened to me.

'You fought in a war and died? Is that not worse?'

I would rather do that again then be in New Jersey Mr.Strange. Wait, I don’t remember a city called Gotham in history class.

Fun Facts about Gotham City

Gotham is one of the most crime ridden cities.

Gotham is protected by a group of vigilantes.

So not only am I in New Jersey, but I'm in one of the most crime ridden cities. I might cry.

And what vigilantes? Does this city have its own version of the Avengers?

—————————————

So here's what I've gathered.

Batman - Grown adult who's a furry. (also hates enhanced people stay away!)

Nightwing - Here on holidays, circus boy.

Red Hood - Crime lord, chill with kids.

Red Robin - Yum!

Signal - Day time hero! Has powers

Spoiler - Purple.

Orphan - Rarely seen, also why the name?

Robin - A child… With swords!

Oracle - Urban Legend, do they exist?

Justice League - Knock-off Avengers 

'Such an amazing selection'

Shut up Mr.Sam Wilson whos in my head for some strange reason

'So when are we telling the kid?'

I should probably leave soon, I wonder what time it is?

8:56 July 30th, 2014

Ahh yes, July 30th 2014. Wait… 2014??? Did I travel back in time? Does that mean that I'm younger now? Let me open up the camera real quick.

…

Well shit. I look 12, aw man. Why do I have so many bruises? Right, from back on titan. Is that a white stripe of hair on my head? Am I graying already?! And are my eyes green… That's not how they usually look, what the flip…

Well I've gotta skedaddle.

Now I just need to find somewhere to sleep, so fun! Maybe a homeless shelter? Nah they would ask too many questions. An abandoned building would fun, I could like decorate-

“-ey kid?” Oh shit, she was talking to me…

“Huh?” I say as I take my headphones off and put it around my neck. “I’m sorry Ms.Barbara could you repeat that?”

“Oh I just realized you didn’t have any shoes on, and we have some in the lost in found that you could wear” Ok but are they free? “Don’t worry they’re free!” She says as she points to the lost and found a couple feet away from her desk.

“Oh thanks!” I say looking at the lost and found.

Well it couldn’t hurt to grab a pair. Wait, I'm 12 now, what was my shoe size back then? I’ll just guess.

Afterwards, I picked out a pretty swag pair of red shoes that were probably my size.

'They’re a size too big.'

How do you know… Also you should have said that before I walked away from the lost and found.

“Wait kid!” What does she want to talk about now? Not that I don’t like talking but it's like 9 at night, i'm tired.

“Uhh, yes?” I say awkwardly hoping that this conversation is short.

“What's your name? Also, do you want a peppermint?” Well those are two totally normal questions that shouldn’t take me too long to answer.

“It’s Peter…” Well now I need a last name. I’m sure Mr.Stark wouldn’t mind, right? “Peter Stark” Well that sound weird “And i'm uhh, allergic to peppermint”

“Oh. Well I'll see you if you decide to come to the library again!” 

“Ok, bye Ms.Barbara!” I say before I absolutely ran out of there.

'You did not run, child, you awkwardly sped walked away.'

… Ok so flip you voice that sounds like Mr.Loki.

'It is me child-'

I wonder why she wanted to talk to me so bad? Probably because of my, charming looks-

'Well you weren’t wearing shoes when you walked in, and your face is covered in bruises.'

Ok well-

'Your hair is covered in that green substance that smells and it’s dried up now so it looks more like lime jello.'  Wanda said her voice laced with disgust.

First of all Mr. Loki its not my fault for the shoes or the bruises. And secondly Ms.Wanda I think the green jello look-a-like adds to my charms.

“So take that!” He mumbled while brushing the green sludge out of my hair until it’s mostly gone before putting the headphones back on.

Chapter Text

As I'm walking around the city I realize that it's getting pretty dark and I should probably find a place to sleep tonight.

I don't have any money so I can't go to a hotel… But I could camp out at an abandoned building.

It's just my luck that I found some abandoned buildings, but I don't know which one to go to, so I ask Karen.

“Uh, hey Karen, which abandoned building do you think is safe enough for me to sleep in?”

“Well Peter I would say that the one across the street is the safest”

“Ok” So all that leaves is walking across the street…

Let's hope nothing bad happens!

…

Did I just jinx myself?

                                          ᵈᵃⁿᵍᵉʳᵐᵒᵛᵉⁿᵒʷᵐᵒᵛᵉ

Move? Where’s the danger?

IS THAT A CAR???

—————————————

I think I hit a kid.

Scratch that.

I’m pretty sure I hit a kid.

Holy shit. Jason is about to be pissed I hit a kid in his territory.

“Uhh hey Oracle? I hit a kid.”

“Nightwing you what!?”

“It wasn't even my fault! He literally spawned in front of me!” I tried to defend myself but the more I spoke the more I realized that I was in the wrong.

“Nightwing, you said you hit a kid. That child did not spawn in front of you.”

“Whatever just call someone to help me”

“Alrighty, where are you?” Well shit.

“Crime Ally” I mumbled.

“Crime Ally? If my memory serves me right isn’t that Hood’s territory” I could hear the sarcasm dripping off her voice.

“I’ll give you 20 bucks if you don’t tell him.”

“Too late he's on his way” 

God damn it.

—————————————

“-ey kid can you hear me?” God? Am I finally dead?

“Hello?” I muttered as I blinked back to life. “God is that you?”

“Nope it’s just me, Nightwing” God damnit. Hold up, Nightwing? I read about him at the library.

“Why are you here?”

“Well about that, I may or may not have hit you with Batman's car…”

What the fuck.

Wait… I could blackmail him into giving me money…

“I thought you were a good guy, yet here you are hitting 12 year olds with cars. Twitter would have a field day with this. Maybe you should give me some compensation, and I might not tell.”

'Peter, are you blackmailing him?'  Mr.Strange said very confused.

Perchance.

'Peter you can’t just say perchance-'

“Are- Are you blackmailing me right now?” Said the black and blue vigilante.

“Maybe, “Famous vigilante Nightwing hits defenseless poor 12 year old child with a car” now that would he a good headline”

“Oh my god fine, what do you-“ Was all the vigilante could spit out before a motorcycle pulled up right next to us

“What's this I hear, you hitting kids with B’s car now?” Huh, well I feel like I noticed him from somewhere…

Red mask? Red helmet? Red hood? That’s definitely not it.

“Yeah dude, he saw me walking across the road and sped up just to hit me.” Hehe, I love lying.

“Really?” Said Red veil.

“What- No I didn’t! C’mon little wing who are you going to believe? Me or some 9 year old kid?”

“You should totally believe me, and I'm 12!” Little wing? What is this man's name? Little Red? Like little red riding hood? Red wing? Sounds dumb but not the dumbest name I've heard while being here.

Cough. Red Robin and Batman. Cough.

“Listen, we can decide who I believe while I drive you to a clinic.”

“Are we taking your motorcycle Mr.Red hat?”

'Red hat? Is that the best you could come up with?'

Shut up Mr.Barnes

“Jeez, did you give the kid brain damage when you ran him over?” So I take it that his name isn’t Red Hat

“I didn’t run him over! Or hit him!” 

“My name is Red Hood. And no kid we aren’t taking my motorcycle, you’ll be in the Batmobile that Nightwing hit you with.” Red Hood? That's dumb. He doesn’t even wear a hood! Almost dumber than Batman.

Wait… Batmobile…

That's even dumber!

“Shotgun!” Me and Nightwing said at the same time. (I said it like a second before)

“I’m older than you I get shotgun”

“You ran me over, I probably have like 100 broken bones” I said while I glared at him from where I was still laying on the road.

“Well if either of you let me finish then you would have heard me say that Nightwing is driving you, while I follow along.” 

“Yeah he's not driving me anywhere after he hit me. If he somehow hit me then he’s going to hit like a million other things.” Wait, can I even stand? I mean I atleast broke a leg, which should heal in a day or two.

“Listen kid, he has to. And maybe you two can make up.” Red Hood said while getting back on his motorcycle.

“Ugh, fine” I said as I (un)willingly stood up and- Holy shit! I immediately fell back on the road, it hurts so much to stand…

“Holy cow kid, are you ok?” Said Dickwing.

“Yeah man you hit me with a car and now I can’t stand, I'm amazing!”

“Red Hood put him in the Batmobile.”

“You hit him, you carry him.”

“I lightly grazed him!” Said Baddriverwing

“I can’t walk.”

'Peter just walk.' Wanda said as if scolding a child.

But Ms.Wandaaaaa it hurtssss

“I'm not carrying him, I barely hit him!” Said Isuckatdrivingwing

“You have to carry him, he can’t walk! I’ll meet you at Dr.Tompkins clinic.” He spoke before he skedaddled away on his motorcycle.

—————————————

“So you hit kids with Batman's car a lot?” I said to fill the silence.

“Listen kid, it was an accident!” 

“How do you “accidentally” hit a kid with a car?”

“Maybe because you're like 3 foot” Ifailedmydrivingtestwing mumbled, keeping his eyes on the road.

“I’ll sue you.”

“Speaking of suing, what's your parents number? I’ll call them so they know where you are at like tenish eleven at night” … Well shit.

“Oh uh, my dad’s away on a business trip, and my moms well… Out of the picture.” Holy shit I'm amazing at lying.

“So dad just left you at home alone?”

“Nah, i'm staying with my Aunt until he gets back.” Sorry for getting you thrown into the mix Aunt May but I need a cover story.

“So what's her number? So I can call her and tell her where you are?”

“Oh she doesn’t have a phone, we’re kind of… broke.” 😔 “Oh does this clinic cost money?” Because if it does I'm jumping out of this car.

“Oh no kid you’re good, it’s free.” Thank goodness.

“So… You should totally give me money cus you hit me.” Wow, I'm so subtle!

“Is taking you to the clinic not enough?” No Icantdriveforshitwing it's not enough.

“No.” I mumbled

“Well we’re like five minutes away from the clinic anyways.”

“Don’t hit anyone else” 

“Sure buddy, i’ve never hit anyon- AAAAAAAAA”

“MOVE SO YOU DON’T HIT THAT GUY”

…

“Is Batman going to be pissed you ran his car into a lightpost?” I mean he probably has other cars.

“How do you feel about walking?”

Chapter Text

if u were here u would get what this chapter used to be...

Chapter Text

“So how are you paying me?” I said while stumbling to walk.

“I’m not paying you!”

“I’m literally stumbling to walk!”

“I offered you help and you refused!” Well shit, he’s got me there.

“Shut up and keep on leading the way Bootywing”

“Bootywing?!”

—---------------------------------------

At the clinic… (In Spongebob two hours later voice)

“So… What's your name kid?” Said Roadhazardwing

“You hit me and you don’t know my name?”

“… You never told meeee.” Wow, a grown adult whining. Never thought I would live to see this.

“Peter.” I mumbled

“What?”

“My name is Peter.”

“Well I'm Nightwing and my buddy here is Red Hood.”

“Cool, cool. So when is-“

“Hey you’re the kid Nightwing hit right?” Said… Some lady when she walked in. She looks professional so lets be safe and assume she's the doctor.

“I didn’t hit him!-“ Hush up Buttholewing.

“He totally hit me. And yeah I'm the kid he hit.”

“So kid-“

“Peter.”

“So Peter , since you got hit by a car we’ll probably just run an x-ray to see if any bones were broken.” Said Dr… Tompkins! While writing something down.

'Child, how are you so bad at remembering names?'

Shut it Mr.Loki.

“Yeah uh, can I use the restroom real quick?”

“Sure, it's down the-” Started Dr.Tompkins.

 “Ok, thanks!” I said before bolting out of the room.

“He didn’t even let me finish.”

—————————————

“I guess I’ll go find him.” Mumbled the doctor before she left the room.

“So that kid, Peter, was most definitely in the pit recently.” Said the eldest vigilante.

“Well he looks like he’s fresh from the pit, but how he acts. It's different.” The younger but taller vigilante. 

“Yeah, he's way more calm then you were when you left the pit, also he’s definitely the kid Oracle told us about at the library right?”

“Obviously.”

“Anywhizzle, Oracle said when he walked in, he still had the Lazarus pit juice in his hair, so he had to have gotten out pretty recently.”

“Maybe this isn’t his first time getting out of the pit. Maybe…” 

No words had to be exchanged. Nightwing knew what Red Hood meant.

Before anything else could be said, Dr.Tompkins walked back into the room

“So we have a situation with the boy. He jumped out a window.”

—---------------------------------------

GUESS WHO JUST JUMPED OUT A WINDOWW!!!

'You did Peter, we all watched you.'

Ok so you were actually supposed to guess Mr.Wilson! Great try though! But when you think about it it’s really their fault for leaving the window unlocked.

'You threw yourself through the window, it wouldn’t have mattered if the window was unlocked or not.'

… You're supposed to be on my side Mr.Strangeeeee.

I mean it’s not my fault the doctor cornered me. I freaked and did the only thing I could. Jumping out of a window!

But I'm currently on the run (no ones chasing me but I like to run), for all the ghosts wondering.

'No ones wondering.'

“Hey Karen, is anyone chasing me?” I asked just to make sure. I mean, a guy has to be on the safe side from time to time.

“Well Peter it seems that the vigilantes Nightwing and Red Hood are on your tail, I would recommend you get a move on.” Well shit, guess I'm actually on the run now.

Now Peter is a smart and quick-witted kid, or at least that's what he has always been told. So he should have no problem outrunning these vigilantes, plus he's smaller and faster so it should be easy peasy. 

Should be.

The one thing Peter didn’t take into conclusion was that these people were trained, not just some random guys. Trained vigilantes.

As Peter ran through the maze of alleys with the pair of vigilantes close on his trail. Being smaller has its advantages, for one he can fit through tiny openings.

Nightwing was on the rooftops chasing Peter, he was surprisingly fast. Red Hood was on the ground chasing Peter, his loud boots being a dead giveaway as to how close he was.

He knew he had to get them off his tail and soon. He ran mindlessly just listening to his “Spidey sense™️” (Wade said to trade mark it for some reason)

Great thing about being stuck in an alternate universe that has aged you down means that now I’m tiny! So time to put my now short height, bendy bones, and fastness to good use.

As he ran through the labyrinth of the alleys knowing that all he needed was to create enough distance between him and the two vigilantes. Once there was enough distance he could find a place to hide and stay there until they went away. He knew if he made one wrong turn he would be toast.

He saw a hiding spot. He knew it would be risky to hide there, especially with the two older men so close. But if he could make it he could be safe, for a couple of minutes until they looked over here for him again.

Why are they even chasing me, I mean I know I got hit by a car and then jumped out a window that was fairly high up, so I really shouldn’t be running right now. But like that’s not even that bad, I mean on a scale of one to ten that's like a two maybe a three.

Ok that's besides the point, back to trying to make it to the hiding spot. It’s only about a foot away, should be relatively easy to get there right? 

Right?

Wrong!

I keep tripping over these darn size-too-big shoes! And they light up! (#twinkletoes4life!) I will admit it is hard to not laugh while running when your shoes light up.

Note to self : Don’t wear light up shoes when getting chased!

His heart was racing. They were getting closer, to close actually. His lungs burned. Red Hood's silhouette was right behind him, he didn't slow down. His legs ached. Peter needed rest, but he couldn’t.

Ahead of him was a narrow alley. He could make it. He had to make it.

He sped up to get farther from Red Hood. All he needed was to get away from Red Hood, Loserwing could wait.

The alley was… Smaller than Peter had anticipated it to be. But he had been in tighter things. (hehe) He was going to make it. When he had made it to the middle of the alley he slowed down. He needed to catch his breath.

That had been a mistake. In the couple of seconds he had stopped Red Hood had caught up.

He was right behind him now. Red Hood placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Peter, stop running. We can help, if you tell me everything that happened, I promise I’ll help.” What Red Hood said made Peter… Mad? Green? None of this made sense. 

Red Hood had now taken his hand off of Peter’s shoulder seeing that he wasn’t running anymore. He was still talking. Peter wasn’t listening. 

Red Hood put his hand back on Peter’s shoulder, normally this would be calming. But something was wrong with Peter. Everything became green for Peter. He couldn’t control himself anymore. It was like his body had moved without his brain's permission.

Next thing Peter knew was that he had knocked out Red Hood. Someone that was trying to help him. What was wrong with him ? Red Hood was only trying to help. Why was he like this now? Harming people who care about him. 

Harming people who were only trying to help.

Nightwing was now off the roof tops. He was standing between Peter and Red Hood. He put a hand up, as if to tell Peter to stay where he was, to stop running. Nightwing was crouching beside Red Hood while talking into an earpiece. 

Peter's super hearing picked up something that no normal person should be able to hear. “Hood’s unconscious, either the kids a meta or the pit he was in did something to him” What was he talking about? Meta? The pit?

Are they bad things? Was Peter something bad? No, he had decided. Peter could never intentionally be something bad. This had to be someone else's doing. Right?

Nightwing was now approaching Peter. The green only grew. Peter couldn’t allow himself to injure anyone else.

So Peter did the one thing he does best. He ran. Nightwing didn’t chase him this time. Good. Now Nightwing couldn’t get hurt like how Red Hood did.

—---------------------------------------

Peter had been running for what felt like forever, even though there had been no one chasing him. The sun was now rising. Peter needed rest.

Peter found an abandoned building. He webbed up to the third, fourth floor? Who cares, not Peter, that's for sure. He had just hoped no one had seen him web up. If this universe treated non-heros with powers like how his universe had, then he was fucked. 

He had broken a window to enter, he would have to fix that later. As Peter dragged himself to the warmest corner of the empty room he was in right now, he could feel his body succumb to the exhaustion of getting hit by a car, jumping out of a window, getting chased by vigilantes and knocking one out, and then running for hours.

He could hear Karen trying to talk to him but he blocked her out. The ghosts of some dead people (Peter had now come to terms with it) were either yelling at him or trying to calm him down. Peter didn’t pay much attention to them, he was too worn out to listen to them.

His eyes shut slowly as he finally submitted to the tiredness. Peter was finally about to get the sleep that he deserved. He could feel his body get engulfed in warmess, however he didn’t know what was warming him. But he knew it felt nice.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Nice to finally be able to talk to you Peter.”

Mr.Strange???

“Yes Peter it’s me” Holy shit he can read my mind!

“Please, refrain from cursing-”

‘pLeAsE rEfRaIn FrOm CuRsInG’ loser butt...

…

“I forgot you could basically read my mind.” 

“It’s alright Peter. But I need to tell you something important.”

 Oooh, wonder what it could be!!!

“As I assume you already know that we lost the war.”

Yeah. I Know…

“Most of the people that passed away are now in the soul stone, but you were different. Instead of being stuck in the stone you’re here, in another universe-”

“Wait, how?” I asked

“Will you ever let me finish my sentences?” Mr.Strange said quite annoyed.

“Yeah, my bad dude…” I mumbled in defeat.

“So as I was saying, we have no clue why you are here and not where everyone else is. But we might be able to help you. You see, it’s not only me, Wanda, Loki, Sam and Bucky that are able to talk to you through our ghost form. Everyone else that we lost are also able to, we just figured it would be better if the five of us eased you into it.”

“Wait but Mr.Loki didn’t get turned to dust, so how is he talking to me?”

“I honestly have no clue kid, he’s just… Odd.” Fair enough Mr.Strange, that’s the only way to describe him

“Well I guess I'll hear you guys around” I chuckled awkwardly while doing finger guns.

“Rest well Peter, you’ll need your energy for tomorrow. Also remember to eat.” Was all I could hear him say. I knew he wanted to say more, but I also knew I needed my sleep. I closed my eyes for the second time that night. I now know what the warmness was, the ghosts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Holy shit I'm so tired…” I grumbled half awake.

'Maybe It’s because you barely got any sleep.' Said other Peter.

Wait...

Other Peter?

Oh my god I forgot there would be more of you guys. 

I wonder who else is here? I guess only time will tell. Welp time to go outside and do shit!

'Don’t you need a solid identity if you’re in another universe?'

Oh em gee Shuri! You have a point…

Back to the library! While I'm there I should probably research more about this universe's timeline, and what's trendy so I seem like I'm from here, and like I'm actually 12 years old. Gotta act my age ya know!

I wonder if they have skibidi toilet here?

Chapter Text

When I very skillfully climbed out the window, after making sure no one was watching. I realized I have no clue where I am. See ghosts this is why you don’t have a panic attack and run until you almost pass out. #LifeLessons

‘Peter I think I speak for all of us when I say we don’t plan to do that, ever. ’

Never a bad thing to be prepared Ms.Wanda.

In the background of the cars in the street, and the people walking I could hear Drax ask one of the other ghosts if i was always so “professional.” Never a bad thing to be professional Drax!

When I had jumped down into an alleyway from the window I had originally entered the building from, I registered that I should probably ask Karen for help.

“Um Karen? Where are we, also how far is the library?” I mumbled just in case anyone else was in the alley.

“It seems that we are in “Crime Alley,” originally named “Park Row” but renamed because of the immense amount of crime. We are currently thirty minutes away from the library that we entered when we first got to Gotham.”

“Alrighty! Lead the way Karen!” I muttered.

—————————————

So after around a bajillion hours of walking and Karen leading the way.

‘It was actually thirty minutes!’

Tomato potato, same thing Mantis. I wonder if Ms.Barbara is working today? Well only one way to find out.

As I walked in I almost immediately turned to check the librarians desk to see if she was there. And surprise surprise! She was there sitting at the desk, typing something, she seemed busy. I promptly walked over to the computers, not bothering to interrupt her from her work to just say hi.

Time to do some hacking and make it seem like I actually exist!

‘I am Groot!’

—————————————

Holy shit. The pit kid (Peter, if he keeps on coming back I should probably get used to saying his name) is back, and seemingly feeling ok. Which is nothing like how Nightwing and Red Hood described him last night. The way they described him it seemed as if he was acting like back when Hood first got out. Guess I should tell them that he’s here and acting like normal.

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

Oracle : Peter is at the library, he seems to be feeling fine, like the exact opposite of how you guys described him last night.

Nightwing : Well that’s a surprise, seeing as he knocked Hood out last night.

Red Hood : Shit, like actually? Like 100% fine, acting like he never had a pit episode?

Oracle : Yep, acting like a normal happy kid.

Red Hood : Stall. I’ll be there soon.

Nightwing : I guess I’ll also be there soon…

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

I guess that’s that, now all that’s left is waiting. Should I tell B about this? 

Nahhh.

—————————————

Finally! I’ve finally finished creating my new identity!

From now on I am Peter Benjamin Stark, son of Tony Anthony Stark. I was born August 31st 2002. Born and raised in Gotham (with the documents to prove it), I live in Crime Alley. I was homeschooled all my life.

I also have a bank account with 2,500 dollars in it! Thank you Mr.Bruce Wayne! (I’m sure he won’t mind the fact that I stole some of his money, I mean he is a billionaire after all.)

It’s foolproof! Thank you Karen for helping me!

 ‘ With our help too.’ Spoke a gruff voice.

Yeah with your help too Mr.Fury… I guess I should probably research pop culture references now so I can fit in.

Skibidi Toilet

8,100,000 Results

Holy cow, it actually exists here. Wait. Does this mean that this universe's brain rot is the same as mine just a couple of years earlier?

W Rizz

19,200,000 Results

Yes it does. I guess that makes this way easier for me, just got to act like a gen-alpha kid from my universe, easy enough. My Peter tingle is telling me to check twitter…

‘Peter tingle?’

Yes, Mr.Barnes. Peter tingle. #Getwiththetimes

Oh em gee! Someone recorded Asswing hitting me, this makes it way easier to sue him now. Too bad Matt’s not here, he would be the perfect lawyer for this case, then again Matt is the perfect lawyer for any case.

#Cantdrivewing #savethekid #gethimoffthestreets

Hehe, I love twitter!

Welp, I’m now well educated on what's “hip and swaggy” in this universe!

—————————————

“Hey Babs! Is Jay here yet?” Said Dick upon entering the library

“Um yes, but, he’s just kind of… How do I put it? Well he’s just staring at the kid. Not in a weird way! But in a if-the-kid-saw-him-he-would-most-definitely-want-to-call-the-police kind of way.”

“Of course,” Dick muttered with a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’ll talk to him.”

“Best of luck to ya.” Barbara said as Dick walked away.

Dick nodded and walked deeper into the library. As he approached, he spotted Jason, leaning against a bookshelf, arms crossed, his eyes locked on the kid. His face was hard to read, but his posture screamed tension.

“Jayyy,” Dick called out softly, keeping his voice low but firm.

Jason didn’t look away. “What?” His tone was flat, but there was an edge beneath it.

“Cut it out. You’re gonna freak the kid out.”

Jason finally turned his head, his expression tight. “I’m just making sure everything’s cool.”

“Yeah? Well, maybe tone it down a little. You look like you’re about to kidnap him. So just back up a little.”

Jason huffed, straightening up. “Fine. I’ll back off. But I don’t want him to go through what I went through alone.”

Dick gave him a half-smile, patting his shoulder. “I get it Jay, don’t worry he seems to be alright. Now let's get back to Bab’s”

—————————————

Chat what do I do…

‘About what?’ Loki said all judgy. (As per usual…)

I dunno maybe about the GROWN ASS MAN STARING AT ME???

‘You do realize you can just leave the library? No need to play Papa’s Freezeria for an hour.’ Peter^2 suggested.

Clearly you’ve never had fun… Probably hate when people are whimsical too…

‘Well my bad I didn’t know that Papa’s Freezeria was more important than getting kidnapped!’ The worst Peter said sarcastically.

…

Chat I'm lowkey kinda hungry…

‘Then leave and find food!” Bucky exclaimed in a kinda mean tone…

Woah there dude… no need to be so aggressive…

Guess I'll just slink away back into the dangerous city now, sighhhh.

When Peter was walking away he couldn’t help but feel like someone was watching him.

“Hey Peter!” 

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Chapter Text

“-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

Oh.

It was just Ms.Barbara!

“Oh! Did I startle you?” Barbara said, clearly frightened.

“Totally not!” Peter said, trying to play it cool.

“Ok..” Barbara said not fully believing him. “Well I just wanted to know what school you're going to this year.” She continued “My two friends here have a younger brother around your age and wanted to know if you would want to be friends with him!”

“Oh uh I dunno what school, but i’ll ask my dad!” Holy cow I completely forgot about needing to go to school.

‘Kid you’re in another universe, I think going to school is the least of your worries.’ Sam said.

“Oh, by the way, where is your dad? Did he not come with you, it’s odd to leave a kid alone in a city.”

“Oh uh..” RAAAAH

‘Are you ok…?’ T’Challa asked.

Holy macaroni what do I do now???

‘Just lie.’ Loki said bluntly.

“Oh he’s out shopping so he told me to just chill here and we would meet up later,” Oh em gee, I’m amazing at lying!

“Is he meeting you here?” Spoke the man with a white streak in his hair.

Huh…  He also has a white streak in his hair.

We have matching white streaks!

“Nah i’m meeting him somewhere else” Peter lied super casually.

‘Why are they asking so many questions, I mean why do they want to know Peter's private business.’ Doctor Strange spoke up.

“I can walk you there if you’d like!” Said a blue-eyed man.

Are these people trying to kidnap me…

“I mean because it’s -uhh- unsafe for a kid to be alone in a city,” He said, trying to sound less suspicious.

So now I trust him less!

ʳᵘⁿ

What.

So I was right! I knew something was off about these people!

‘Maybe listen to your spideysense and run instead of celebrating that you got something right!’ Shuri said in a voice that was telling me to rush out.

Shoot good point!

—————————————

“I blame you for the kid running away.” Jason said bluntly as he watched Peter run out of the library.

“How is it my fault!? Maybe you scared him when you were watching him..” Dick stated.

“I wasn’t even watching him at creeply as you claim!-“ Jason said.

“Maybe it was both of you guys that caused him to run off.” Barbara said, cutting Jason off. “I mean Peter’s just a kid, he probably felt overwhelmed with Jason watching him and Dick asking him so many questions. If Peter was anything like Jason when he got out of the pit, we’re lucky we didn’t have a repeat of last night.”

“I suppose you have a good point. Maybe if Jason and I hadn't been so off putting he might not have ran away.” Dick vocalized after a couple of second

“I guess we were a little intense.”Jason muttered.

“So if Peter does end up going to the same school as Dami is he going to get involved too?” Dick asked

“More than likely yes,” Barbara spoke.

“Is everyone else going to get involved?” Jason requested.

“Still trying to decide but I'm leaning towards yes.” Barbara said.

“I’ll text Duke since he’s good with kids,” Jason stated as he pulled out his phone.

“Oh you should text Tim, since he knows how to deal with pit madness, because of you…” Dick voiced.

—————————————

Damn I for real thought I could trust them…

‘You thought you could trust people in one of the dangerous cities?’ Sam commented.

Ok well no but like I needed to feel the #heartbreak…

“This is so sad… Karen can you play Casual by Chappell Roan…” Peter murmured while he sped through the crowded city sidewalk. By now Peter had already put his headphones on, not wanting to hear the city's loud noises.

“Peter I fear Chappell Roan doesn’t exist in this universe” Karen told peter.

NOOOOOOOO

This is the second worst thing to EVER happen to me..

‘What is the first thing?’ Drax asked.

Being in New Jersey…

‘Is dying at least third on this list? Dr.Strange questioned.

Nah dying is like tenth, maybe nineth.

‘Of Course it is…’ Dr.Strange mumbled sounding disappointed.

Ok wait does anyone here know any Chappell Roan songs???

‘I think I know some of her songs,’ Shuri said, speaking up.

Thanks Shuri, you’re now my favorite brain ghost!

Don’t worry other brain ghosts, I'll sing some of her songs so you guys can catch up on what good music sounds like.

‘Oh god no-‘ Bucky started speaking before he was cut off by someone running into Peter.

“Oh shit!- I’m so sorry!” Spoke the man that ran into Peter.

“Dude that’s!-“ Said the guy who was running with the dude that ran into Peter.

“Thanks for asking how I am... I’m perfectly fine!” Peter said sarcastically as he stood up from where he was knocked down.

“Oh uh… You good?” Asked the man that knocked Peter down as he wiped Peter's shoulders clean.

“Yep! Just peachy!” Peter said, adjusting his headphones.

“Good good… Well nice meeting you! Uh- I’m Tim and this is Duke,” Spoke the human bulldozer as he gestured to himself and the guy he was walking with.

“Um- I’m Peter.” Peter said awkwardly, just trying to get away from them.

“Are your headphones ok? Cus they look expensive," asked the guy- Duke. Duke asked.

“Oh yea they’re good no worries. Excuse me, I really should be leaving now” Peter said.

“We can walk you!” Tim commented.

Ok now what is people’s deal with trying to walk me places…

“Nah I’m Good! Thanks for offering though!” Peter insisted as he sped walk away from the two boys.

All Peter heard as he walked away from Duke told Tim “I told you that I should have done the talking! You should have eased into it not immediately say “Hey let us, two people who are obviously older than you, walk you, an obvious child home!” no kid in Gotham who has half a brain cell would accept!”

Damn… So everyone really is trying to kidnap me!

—————————————

Maybe I should move where I’m staying a floor down so when I’m forced to climb up a building to get inside I don’t have to climb that high…

‘Kid, no one forced you to stay in the highest floor of this building’ The inferior Peter replied.

…

So just be a hater I guess…

Anyways! Can we have a raise of hands of who thinks I should go out to see what the city is like at night so I can be prepared for when I go out as Spider-Man!!!

Almost immediately Peter could hear a chorus of no’s, telling him not to go out.

Ok so i’m actually just going to do my own thing and just go out anyways! So at like 8:30 I’ll go out!

‘You don’t have a clock, how are you going to know the time?’ Asked Fury.

Easy, I’ll just ask Karen!

“Hey Karen, what time is it?”

“ It’s 8:02 Peter.” Karen responded.

Guess I'll go out early!

‘Peter no!-‘

—————————————

Holy guacamole, it's so cold!

‘Maybe because you’re wearing a shirt made of thin material, shitty sweats, and ugly shoes’ Bucky commented.

Don’t diss the fit Mr.Barnes… Clearly you don’t know what style is nowadays.

Ya know, these streets are way better when they’re empty and there’s no cars trying to hit you!

‘You’re never going to let him live it down, are you?’ Sam asked.

Nope!

Geeze this side walk is empty…

Then Peter heard it, faint footsteps following him. His spideysense was warning him he should start running, what when has he every listened to himself! He figured speed walking should be enough to keep him away from whatever was following him.

But oh was he wrong. Before he could react a hand yanked his shoulder pulling him back and turning him around.

“Wallet. Now.” The voice was deep and menacing. Like the voice short muggers put on to be taken seriously. Peter then noticed he had something in his pocket, too big to be a knife. 

This man had a gun.

Yay!

“Dude, are you really gonna mug a kid?” Peter asked, obviously not taking this seriously.

“Yeah, now empty yer pockets or else I’ll shoot.” The man said, taking his gun out. He sounded serious but something deep inside Peter knew he was going to be safe.

“Damn you must have hit a new low if you’ve resorted to mugging kids…” Peter mumbled.

“That’s enough,” a voice said, calm and commanding.

The mugger turned, startled, but he barely had time to react before the dude swung forward, striking the gun out of the thief’s hand with a practiced blow. The would-be robber stumbled back, disarmed and disoriented, but the man moved quickly, grabbing the man’s arm and twisting it behind his back. Within seconds, the mugger was on the ground, pinned and immobilized.

Peter wondered who in the world had trained this man. 

Peter was also wondering who this dude was.

Red something…

Oh, Red Robin! 

How has the restaurant not sued him for identity theft…

Red Robin then turned to Peter, giving a reassuring nod. “You alright?”

“Uh yeah, thanks.” Peter mumbled.

“What's a kid like you doing out this late anyways?” Red Robin asked

“Oh ya know, just taking a walk.” Peter answered, adjusting his shirt.

“Well get home. And stick to the streets with more lights, less of a chance of getting robbed,” And just as quickly as he appeared, Red Robin had disappeared just as quickly.

‘Let's call it an early night and head home’ Wanda said.

Good thinking Ms.Wanda!

—————————————

When Peter had finally gotten home he had come to the conclusion that Red Robin was definitely stalking him, and that he was working with the people from the library and the two teens.

Peter had come home later than usual, he had accidentally gotten lost. (Got robbed around five times and was saved by Red Robin each time) But now that he was home he could finally rest.

He curled up in his blanket (a jacket he had found on the ground of an alley), and fell asleep into the somewhat warm warmth that engulfed him.

—————————————

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

What the pit gc

Yum!: so good news and bad news about Peter…

Dead Girl Walking: Give us the good news first

Dick: Wait I kinda want the bad news first

Sun baby from teletubbies: since i’m the coolest I say we do the bad news first

Carrot: Tim just give us the good news

Yum!: ok so good news is that I know the area that Peter lives in!

Dead Girl Walking: oh shit for real? where?

Yum!: somewhere in crime alley i dunno the exact area since i lost him

Dick: At least we have a lead!

Carrot: And the bad news?

Yum!: well i did stop him from getting robbed around 6 times sooo

Sun baby from teletubbies: y was he out so late???

Dick: Damn his dad really doesn’t care about him

Dead Girl Walking: So we all agree not to tell B about this?

Carrot: Obviously, if he got his hands on Peter he would be adopted in no time

Sun baby from teletubbies: doesn’t Peter have a dad already?

Dead Girl Walking: You act like that’s going to stop him

Sun baby from teletubbies: good point…

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

Chapter Text

“Meow meow meow meow…”

‘Peter, please stop. That’s all you’ve been saying for the last hour. What does it even mean?’ Dr.Strange spoke, sounding concerned.

You guys were mad when I sang Chappell Roan, now you guys are mad that I'm singing the sad cat song…

‘We get that ur sad about not getting to scope out the city last night, but do not take your anger out on us by meowing’

You guys just don’t get it…

Maybe it’s because you guys-

“I have a surprise for you Peter,” Karen said, interrupting Peter before he could land his insult.

Oh em gee! I love surprises!

“What's the surprise karen?” Peter asked.

“I know you’ve most likely been worried about school, so I took the liberty to sign you up for Gotham Prep.” Karen spoke.

“Really!”

“Yes, the entry exam is August 9th. It would be best to start studying now.” Karen said. “Also Peter, with the new money in your “fathers” bank account you are able to buy supplies to fix your suit. While you’re at it, buy some food and clothes, don’t forget to buy personal hygiene products.”

So first the entrance exam is in two days and it’s the day before my birthday, but Karen is also calling me stinky…

“Thanks Karen!” Peter said, trying to brush off the fact that Karen borderline told him he smells.

‘Peter, please buy some food. You look one blink away from dying.’ Bucky interjected.

That just reminded me I haven’t eaten in days…

Chat trust that’s NOT gonna sit well with my metabolism…

‘What does that mean??? Peter, what do you mean??-‘

—————————————

Ok gluten free or not gluten free bread?

‘What is gluten?’ Asked Drax.

So it’s like the stuff in bread that makes it- I don’t know…

…

Non gluten free it is!

The shop was empty and quiet, it added to the “gothic” aesthetic that was Gotham. From what Peter knew there were only three people in the shop. There was the cashier, Peter, and one of the guys that had bumped into Peter the other day. 

Peter had just finished his shopping for the day, that goodness that there was a store that sold basically everything. Plus it was close to his makeshift house, so plus 10 points! After he buys everything he needs Peter would have a whopping 1,872 dollars left. (Groceries in Gotham are way cheaper than in NYC, Peter assumes that’s because of the crime rate.)

When Peter had walked up to the cashier he had gotten an odd look, like the kind of look he gave to little kids that he found on patrol that were going through hard times. Then again who wouldn’t give that kind of look to a homeless looking kid that was shopping by themselves.

The cashier had blonde hair, and blue eyes. Not the kind that stare into your soul but the kind that reminded you of the sky on a warm summer day. L̶i̶k̶e̶̶t̶h̶e̶̶c̶o̶l̶o̶r̶̶t̶h̶e̶̶s̶k̶y̶̶w̶a̶s̶̶t̶h̶e̶̶d̶a̶y̶̶t̶h̶a̶t̶̶U̶n̶c̶l̶e̶̶B̶e̶n̶̶d̶i̶e̶d̶.

“Buying for the week?” The cashier asked, breaking the silence that was Peter's mind.

“Uh yeah,” Peter managed to say.

It was awkward trying to ignore the teenage dude (not)subtly staring at Peter. It was the same guy that had ran into Peter a couple days ago.

What was his name? Tom? Maybe Tim. Peter had absolutely no idea. Peter hoped it was Tom, then he could call him “Peeping Tom”.

“Your total comes out to $628, will that be cash or card?” The cashier said. Her name tag said Steph but it feels weird to call someone you don’t know by their name, even if it’s in your head.

“Card” Peter stammered out. He was happy that he decided to pick up a card from the bank yesterday.

‘How weirded out do you think she is about the fact that a child is buying groceries by themself?’ Sam asked.

Oh my goody goodness, I completely forgot about you guys… I would say like a good 7/10

“That’ll be all,” The cashier said, her fake customer service smile faltering as she kept glancing back at Tom. (Tim? Toby?) Maybe he’s stalking her to…

—————————————

Sometimes being the only daytime vigilante sucks, but on the bright side (pun intended) at least I have a somewhat normal sleep schedule.

At least it’s a quiet patrol today.

I just jinxed myself didn’t I…

Wait, is that the kid Tim and I ran into the other day? Why is he carrying so many bags???

Well might as well strike up a conversation!

“Hey kiddo! Need help carrying those bags?” What kid even needs to carry that many bags???

“Nah i’m good,” Damn this kid sucks at lying…

“Are you sure? Those look pretty heavy,” All of that has gotta weigh a ton…

“Broski I’m pretty sure I can handle carrying these bags for a block or two”

“Kid you’re like ten years old, let me help,”  Said “kid”  was also like 4 '11, but that went unspoken.

“Ok well first of all I’m fif- twelve! And secondly-“

“Wait wait wait wait, were- were you about to say fifteen?”

“No! Now let me speak!” Damn who knew kids could be this demanding… (*cough* Damian *cough*) “I am twelve and you need to stop following me before I do something,” 

“And what are you going to do?” Yeah, show him who’s boss Duke!

“HE’S TRYING TO TOUCH ME HELP! HE’S A PEDO, A PEDO!”

Well shit.

“You guys, he's lying!” Duke tried to defend himself but the various adults and parents around didn’t believe him. It’s going to take a lot of meddling around to get no one to publish a news article about this…

Now if I could just convince him to-

He’s gone.

WELL FLIP

—————————————

Chat, why are so many people trying to follow me home…

‘Maybe these people are trying to help you’ T’Challa commented.

Maybe… Or they’re a part of the space police and they know I'm not from this universe and they’re trying to kidnap me! Now it makes sense why Buttwing hit me, he was trying to weaken me before snatching me…

‘Peter. That’s the dumbest thing I've ever heard, and I've heard some dumb things,’ Mr.Barnes commented.

Wow… Didn’t know you were such a hater…

Ya know, it was way easier getting into the building this time!

‘Peter you dropped everything at least five times,’ The worser Peter (un)helpfully added.

Nuh uh…

I feel like a good house owner would scope out the place before putting their groceries away…

‘But this isn’t your house,’ Mantis said, confused.

Exploring here we come!

—————————————

I TOOK LIKE FIVE STEPS HOW DID I GET LOST???

‘Peter I’ll give you five bucks if you turn around and there are stairs,’ Shuri said giggling.

I have a gut feeling that you’re lying about the five bucks part… But I'm broke (minus the money I stole from Bruce Wayne (i’ll pay him back, in the far future)) and desperate, so I guess I have to turn around…

Peter slowly turned around and to no one's surprise there was a staircase! So Peter decided that there was no other possible outcome for this situation other than to walk up the staircase. 

Peter placed one foot on the first step and then as one would expect, he placed his other foot on the second step. Because that’s how stairs work!

The staircase spiraled upward, which Peter thought was unnecessarily dramatic for something as lame as stairs. As he ascended, the air grew cooler (very uncool dude…), and the faint smell of how one would imagine the Grinch would smell (ew) filled his nose.

He reached for the brass doorknob as he finally finished climbing the stairs, which was to everyone's (no one's) surprise cold, and gave it a cautious twist. The door opened with a reluctant creak, and suddenly Peter was on the abandoned building roof. 

It was now nighttime outside, which was surprising to Peter. It had been mid-day when he went out shopping. How long did he spend exploring?

The ground was rocky under his twinkle toes (he’ll change his shoes once he gets more money #beabuddynotabully). It was pitch black, the moon and stars were shining as best as they could through the Gotham (ew) pollution (double ew).

Ya know for a place called Crime Alley there weren’t that many crimes happening that Peter could hear. It was an oddly qui-

‘Don't jinx it’ Bucky said sternly.

Ok…

Peter shuffled to the edge of the building’s rooftop, shoes scuffing against the gravel surface. He moved with the cautious determination of someone navigating a room full of sleeping cats, arms slightly outstretched for balance, eyes darting between his feet and the drop ahead.

When he reached the ledge, he stopped, peered over with a dramatic “whoa,” and took a step back, shaking his head as if to say, not today, gravity. Then, after a moment’s hesitation, he carefully lowered himself to sit, scooting forward inch by inch like he was testing how much ledge his butt could safely occupy.

Finally, he plopped down with an audible sigh, swinging his legs over the edge and letting them dangle freely. His shoes tapped against the air like they were trying to find solid ground. He looked out at the skyline and for a moment, if he squinted his eyes, he could almost pretend he was back in New York.

—————————————

The streets of Gotham were eerily silent, save for the faint hum of distant traffic. Red Hood moved through the shadows with practiced ease. He was on patrol, as always, looking for trouble before it found someone else.

But then, he noticed it, a flicker of light. At first, he thought it was just some malfunctioning neon sign. Then, the flicker became a rhythmic flash, like… little disco lights???

Jason squinted. The light was coming from a person. The faint light barely lit up his face, but he could see the person's face. And that person was… the kid Dick hit?!

“Are his sneakers lighting up?” Jason muttered to himself. He hopped over, rooftop to rooftop, being careful not to startle the kid. And then it hit him, this kid, ( Peter was his name, Jason remembered him telling him) was sitting at the edge of a rooftop, feet swaying without a care in the world.

Jason’s stomach dropped, only one thought flooded his mind. “Is he about to jump?”

Jason walked over cautiously, being careful not to scare the poor kid.

“Mind stepping away from the ledge for me?”

Peter turned around, startled. “What?”

“Oh wait!- I wasn’t going to- Like I would never!” Peter sputtered out, scrambling away from the edge to make himself look innocent.

“You need someone to talk to?” Jason asked, slowly walking closer to Peter. Maybe- “What the hell are those?”

They both looked down at what Jason was talking about. Peter’s sneakers, which were still blinking obnoxiously.

“My shoes…they’re twinkle toes….”

“Wanna tell me why you’re up here?” Jason said, placing a hand on Peter's shoulder when he got close enough.

Apparently that was a bad move. 

In the blink of an eye, Peter flinched away, stumbling back just enough to almost fall. 

Thank goodness Red Hood was trained with fast reflexes, as he was able to grab Peter in time before he fell off the ledge. Unfortunately Peter's head phones didn’t have the same fate, instead they fell all the way down to the ground.

Crack!  

“So do all vigilantes in Gotham just love breaking stuff? I mean first Nightwing broke my legs and now you broke my headphones,” Peter was complaining as Jason gently held him up by his arms, and he kept on complaining but Jason was NOT listening.

The bruises that were on his face looked at least a week old. Jason knew that couldn’t be right, he had seen the kid a few days ago and his bruises looked brand new.

“You were literally about to fall. Would you have rather fallen?” Jason rhetorically asked, standing Peter back on the ground.

“I mean-”

“Don’t answer that.” Jason said sternly “What are you even doing up here? Shouldn’t you be at home sleeping .” Jason asked.

“Kids need a breath of fresh air every once in a while too..” Peter said, looking down sadly at his probably broken headphones.

“And you couldn’t have picked a safer place?” Jason questioned.

“I don’t really trust being on the ground. Especially not after Nightwing hit me.” Peter complained, and Jason had to admit, it was a little funny. “I mean that was not sigma of him to hit me”

Now it may sound dumb, and the more Jason thinks about it the dumber it sounds, but that final sentence that Peter said really made Jason realize how young Peter really was. I mean a twelve year old has to go through dying, being brought back and having to deal with it alone (Jason assumes alone, I mean what sane father wouldn’t notice their kid missing). 

Jason tried to play off his sudden shock. “Uh yeah, super not sigma of him,” In moments like this Jason was glad his mask barely showed any of his facial expressions. “You should head home, Gothams too dangerous for kids like you to be out late.”

“Boo, you’re not my dad” Peter retorted, rolling his eyes.

“Where is your dad?” Jason shot back.

“... At your moms house!”

“My mom is dead.”

“Oh um.. I meant your dads house!”

“My dads also dead,” 

“Ok you’re making this really hard for me,” Peter complained, “you got any aunts or uncles?”

“I’m not answering that.”

“Yeah fair enough,” Peter mumbled, “well I'm gonna head home!”

“I’ll walk you, wouldn’t want you knocking out anyone else.”

“Ok I accidentally knocked you out!” Peter said in a poor attempt to defend himself.

“Sure sure..” Jason muttered under his breath. “Just follow me.”

“I am not following you.”

“I’ll give you this granola bar,” Jason said, pulling a granola bar out of his pocket.

…

“Fine,” Peter uttered, yanking the granola bar out of Red Hoods hand.

Jason knew that would work, I mean the kid looks a breath away from passing out.

“How far away do you live?” Jason asked, as he carried Peter down the building safely.

“Ok well put me down first…” Peter complained, looking very similar to when you pick up an angry cat.

“Just lead the way.” Jason grumbled, as he set Peter down.

“Rude…” Peter accused. “So it's in that direction- OH EM GEE LOOK BEHIND YOU!”

Jason turned around quickly, getting in a battle-like stance, obviously expecting a criminal of some sort. But there was nothing there (minus the raccoon trying to climb into the garbage can). 

“Peter what are you talking about?-”

Oh. 

Jason somehow lost the kid. 

I mean you turn around for one second and BOOM, the kid that looks a blink away from death somehow got away.

“I hate this kid…” Jason groaned.

Chapter Text

heh… u thought this was a new chapter…

could NEVER be me

APRIL FOOLS!!!

#sucks2beyou#taketheL#sucks2suck

😜

Chapter Text

Maybe I should actually stop running from people who are just trying to help me…

‘You’re only just now thinking of this?’ Asked Shuri

Well, the thought popped into my head as I was running away from Red Hood, and as I started climbing this fire escape I had the most profound thought of the century.

‘And that thought was common knowledge?’ Replied Shuri.

Maybe… Maybe not…

‘Just finish climbing the fire escape.’

Yeah ok…

—————————————

The next day went by in a flash.

Peter ate almost all the food he had bought, slept, and was honestly just kinda sigma!

It was like that one scene in Twilight, cue the music!

♫There's a possibility…♫

‘Peter, no one’s going to get that reference.’ Sam said.

Sounds like a them problem…

Now back to me singing!

♫There's a possibility-♫

—————————————

‘Peter, don’t you have an entry exam tomorrow?’ Wanda asked.

I do???

‘Karen literally told you this before she broke- how did you forget???’

Ok well, I was busy running away from a CRIME LORD that day, so EXCUSE me if I’m forgetful…

‘Peter, you will not embarrass yourself by going to an entry exam at a very prestigious middle-high school in pajama pants, a Shrek t-shirt, and twinkle toes.’ Wanda scolded.

Don’t worry, I bought more clothes while at the store!

‘All you did was buy more Shrek shirts and pajama pants.’

It’s called style!

‘Go get more clothes.’ Wanda ordered.

Fineeeeeeee.

Well, we wanna save our money, but the only clothes that one store sold were “embarrassing”...

‘Doesn’t the library have a lost and found? You could check if they have any clothes you could take!’ Mantis helpfully added.

Genius!

But what if she asks questions…

I think I’ll just take the risk of her asking questions!

And as my good friend George Cooper would say, “Risk it for the brisket,” but in this case the brisket is clothes.

‘George Cooper as in Sheldon Cooper's dad???’ Sam asked confused

—————————————

I wish more people visited the library, then they could see that libraries are actually fun and not boring.

…

Whose kid is army-crawling into the library…

Scrawny, ugly clothes, white streak in hair-

PETER???

“Hey Peter,” Barbara says as she wheeled over to Peter who's trying, but failing, to pull himself forward into the library “Maybe you should get off the ground. It’s really dirty.”

“Oh! Um… Good point!” Peter spoke in an embarrassed tone as he got up off the ground and dusted himself off.

“So-” “Hey-” They said at the same time.

“You can go first, Ms.Barbara,” Peter said.

“So are you going to tell me why you were army crawling on the floor?”

“... no..” Peter replied

“You want to tell me why you’re here then?”

“Yeah, I was wondering if there were any clothes in the lost and found I could take..”

“There is, but couldn’t you have just like …. asked , instead of army crawling through the front door?”

“Well yeah , but where's the fun in that” 

“And why do you even need to take clothes from the lost and found? Can’t your dad just buy you some?” Barbara questioned, eyeing Peter

“But these are free,” Peter said as his head hung low.

“... The lost and found box is behind my desk,” Barbara said with a sigh as she pointed to the box behind her desk.

“Thanks!” Peter said quickly before speed-walking over to the box.

That is one odd kid…

“Soooo, where exactly is your dad?” Barbara questioned Peter as she wheeled over to him..

“He’s… working,” Peter said, coming off more so as a question than a statement

Normally I would believe him, mostly because he’s a kid, but the way he said that makes me think that he isn't even sure that his dad is working.

“Oh well when does he get off?” Barbara asked.

“Um… In a time,” Peter blurted out.

“If you insist…” Barbara mumbled under her breath. “Well, I got more candy, and before you say anything this time I have zero mints,” She said as she reached for the bowl on her desk. This time, it was filled with various types of candy and not mints like the last time Peter had visited the library.

Peter paused his digging through the box before answering. “You got strawberry bon bons?”

“You mean those strawberry candies that grandmas have?” Barbara asked. “Yeah I have some,” She finished as she grabbed one from the bowl and tossed it to Peter.

“Hey quick question, what do kids wear nowadays?” Peter asked

Shouldn’t kids know what other kids are wearing…

“Well it depends” Barbara started “what do you need the clothes for?”

“I have to take an entry exam for this random school.”

Why aren’t his parents buying him clothes for the entry exam?

“Which school?” Barbara asked

“I can’t just tell you , basically a stranger, what school I'm going to enroll in. Don’t you know what stranger danger is?” Peter said, obnoxiously pointing his finger towards her to further prove his point.

“I’ll find out one way…” Barbara mumbled suspiciously under her breath.

“Wait- What??” Peter said confused

“Anyways!” She said in a more cheery tone. “You find clothes you like?”

“Erm, yeah I did,” Peter said as he held up the cringiest science pun shirt in all of existence.

“Oh!-“ Barbara said before immediately covering her mouth so that Peter couldn’t hear her laugh. “It’s fantastic!”

“Then why are you trying not to laugh…” Peter said as he hung his head in embarrassment.

“Because I just remembered something really funny! Duh!” Barbara said as she hid her face in her hands.

“Dude! You’re clearly laughing at me, and science puns are totally in this year!” Peter said in a very poor attempt to defend himself.

“Peter- I have a friend who has a brother your age and let me tell ya, he would laugh in your face if he ever saw you.” Barbara said as she finally composed herself.

“Oh he’s my age, ya know i’m amazing at talking to kids my age, what’s his name, maybe me and him can hang out sometime,” Peter said

“Odd way to phrase that, but you do you!” Barbara said. “Maybe I could call him over and you two could hang out till your dad gets off his shift,”

“I mean if you insist,” Peter said.

“Alrighty! Lemme just give him a quick call!” Barbara said before wheeling away to call Damian privately.

Chapter Text

yall read the title so yall already know the deal! so i know i haven’t updated in like… *checks notes* in THREE MONTHS??? but trust when I say a lot of stuff has happened, like i could make an autobiography about what’s gone down in the span of three months. But fret not my youngins once i get my pills and am in the right headspace i WILL post a chapter!!! i’m so sorry to the people who were looking forward to a chapter where Damian and Peter interact and in your honor i will make the chapter EXTRA long! <3