Hi guys, sorry about the delay uploading this latest chapter... I swore I'd posted but apparently not! Oops. Anyway, hope it's worth the wait and the next chapter is on its way, just needs finishing touches :)

Peter was in the middle of his bed in his own special room in the Avengers Tower, looking up at the ceiling with a small smile on his face. He loved the fact that he had gotten to redecorate the entire room, even the ceiling! All he'd had to do was tell Friday the designs and layout he was thinking of, and the next day he came in, it had been finished, every inch decorated as perfectly as he'd wanted. Maybe he should try asking Mr. Stark if it'd be possible to make a little station in his room as a substitute mini lab so that he could make web fluid and other things he couldn't make very well at school.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he hadn't realized that Tony was outside his room, knocking on the door until Friday told him.

"Mr. Parker, Sir is getting quite impatient waiting outside," the AI mentioned casually. "He has been knocking for the past five minutes and is considering breaking down your door."

Peter sat up quickly, calling, "Come in!" He quickly shot his web and twisted the lock on the door, finally allowing Tony inside.

The man opened the door with a raised eyebrow. "Kid, I swear to god, I'm going to take your door off the hinges if you ever do that to me again," he threatened, but they both knew that he wouldn't anyway.

Nevertheless, Peter nodded frantically, saying, "Sorry, Mr. Stark. I was distracted."

"Yeah, I can tell," Tony snorted. "Anyway, I'm not here because of anything important; I just wanted to let you know that the others are moving back here."

"The others?" Peter frowned, slightly confused. Was Tony getting more workers? Sometimes he wished it was just him and the billionaire; it was way more fun that way!

"Uh, yeah." Tony's brow furrowed. "Have you forgotten already? Steve and the others, kid," he clarified.

Peter stiffened. "Oh, right. Of course."

"You okay, kid?" Tony looked slightly concerned and puzzled at Peter's reaction.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Mr. Stark, don't worry. I'm a bit hungry though, can we get pizza?"

"Of course, pal. Friday will let you know when to come down to the kitchen." Though he still looked a bit curious and suspicious, Tony stepped out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Peter sighed, running a hand through his hair. How could he have forgotten that all the Avengers were moving back in? If this had been a few months earlier, he would've been jumping up and down with joy and pestering Mr. Stark about it for a week! But, oh, right. There was a reason why he wasn't too excited.

Steve.

Peter knew that Tony had forgiven Steve, or at least… they were "working on it," but Peter couldn't just forgive the man for hurting Tony, Cap or not. At least the others had only gotten on different sides over the accords, but Steve? Steve had lied to Tony about his parents' death and that just wasn't cool.

Still, Peter trusted Tony and if Tony said things were okay… well, maybe that could be. Peter wasn't sure. He sighed, rolling over on the bed and absently picking up a comic book from his bedside table.

He read it for the next fifteen minutes, trying not to think about the upcoming changes at the tower, putting it aside when Friday informed him that the pizza man had just arrived. He sat up and sighed. He knew the truth was that he didn't want things to change. He liked the way things were now. He still lived with Aunt May and got to spend time with her, but now he spent a couple of nights a week in the tower as part of his 'internship', which amazingly, May had agreed to almost immediately. Peter didn't even want to think about how Tony had managed that; he was just glad he got to spend time at Avengers tower as one of the guys. And having his room? Well, that was just awesome!

Peter decided that if Tony thought this was okay then he'd adjust to it and give the others a chance, even Steve. Resolve strengthened, he made his way to the kitchen with a smile. "Pepperoni? My favourite."

"Only the best for the newest Avenger," Tony told him with a wink. "Dig in."

They both sat down on the couch, reaching for slices of pizza from the four boxes Tony had placed there. Peter ate contentedly for a while before noticing a stack of extra boxes, and frowned. "Uh, Mr. Stark? What…. I mean, why… you got a lotta pizza…"

Tony swallowed down his slice and steeled himself for Peter pouting at him. "Uh yeah, about that… we have some extras for dinner," he explained casually.

Peter cocked his head at him in surprise, an uneasy feeling settling in his stomach. "Extras?" he parroted suspiciously.

As if on cue, Friday spoke. "Sir, your guests have arrived."

"Great, Friday, send them up. Thanks," Tony answered. He turned back to Peter. "I thought we could have dinner together because the others move in. You know, get used to each other a little. You're going to be seeing a lot of them when you visit and I want you to get a chance to talk to them in a non-hostile environment first."

Before Peter had a chance to say anything about that, the lift doors opened and Steve, Wanda, Sam and Clint stepped out onto the floor.

Tony smiled, putting down the slice of pizza he had been holding in his hand. "Hey," he greeted the others. "Finally decided to join the party?"

"We didn't want to come too early and wake you up," Steve said with a small nod, no particular expression on his face.

"Yeah, we all know how long you sleep for, if you even do sleep," Sam joked. "What's this? You ordered pizza? Awww, just for us, right?" Without even waiting for an answer, he immediately snatched a slice up to eat, letting out a satisfied hum at the taste.

Tony rolled his eyes. "I sleep. But I'm usually a little preoccupied saving the world and being the charming guy I am."

"No wonder you don't sleep then, must take a lot of work to be a charming guy…" Clint retorted with a smirk, following Sam's lead and grabbing a slice of his own.

Wanda stood back a little nervously, watching events with a scrutinising eye. It wasn't until Steve turned to her with an encouraging smile and a murmured, "It's okay, we're safe," that she began to settle. She cocked her head to one side when she noticed Peter, who was sat beside Tony staring at the scene in shock, a slice of pepperoni pizza forgotten about in his right hand.

Tony must've realized how unsettled Peter was feeling, because he nudged the teenager, and raised an eyebrow, as if to say, You okay? Peter just smiled tightly back, ducking his head and quickly resuming in eating his pizza.

As Peter ate, he made eye contact with Steve, and Tony, seeing this, quickly cleared his throat and announced, "We have a new addition to the team. This is Peter; I'm sure Steve has told you all about him." Tony raised an eyebrow, looking around the room. "His identity is a secret, so if you let it slip, I will let Dummy castrate you all. Even you." He pointed at Wanda.

Peter flushed, sinking in his seat. "It's okay, Mr. Stark," he mumbled, feeling his face grow warm. God, Tony was acting like an overprotective dad! It felt kinda nice though; it had been a while since someone had done something like that for him.

Tony just rolled his eyes.

"Seriously, Tony? You've grown soft," Sam snorted. He waved two slices of pizza around as he spoke. "You're letting what, a twelve year old join the team now?"

"I'm fifteen," Peter said tightly, but Sam continued speaking right over him, as if he hadn't opened his mouth.

"I mean, I get it, abilities and all, but—"

"Peter can handle himself," Tony interrupted Sam. "You, on the other hand, need some new pigeon wings before your current ones break down."

At the same time, Peter blurted out, "That's not what you thought when I took you and the Winter Soldier on a while ago and basically won!"

There was a small pause and everyone seemed to stop. Peter's mouth went dry and he glanced at Tony, wondering if he was in trouble. Surprisingly, the man had a glint of amusement in his eyes, and Peter relaxed, knowing that everything was okay.

Clint snorted and exclaimed through a mouthful of pizza, "I like him! He'll be a great addition to the team."

Peter managed a smile at that, relieved to hear someone on the team didn't think he was useless. He ducked his head again with a shrug, eyes focused solely on his pizza.

Tony watched him a moment before turning back Steve. "Are you guys ready for the big move?" he asked casually. He wasn't actually sure when they were moving in; they hadn't discussed an actual date.

Steve nodded. "Everything's ready. We were hoping to come this weekend."

Peter nearly choked on his pizza. That was like, two days away! His free hand clenched slightly and he spoke without even thinking about it. "Actually, that's no good. Tony, we have that project, remember?"

Tony's brow knitted together in confusion. "Project? Uh, nope, no projects planned, kid."

Peter almost glared at the man, but barely managed to refrain from doing so. Instead, he took an angry bite of his pizza, glowering at the table, making it a point to ignore the confused look Tony shot him.

Steve seemed to sense the tension between them because he raised an eyebrow and said slowly, "We can come after the weekend if that's better; the hotel we're staying at isn't that bad."

"No, really, it's fine." Tony waved him off. "No use spending your time wasting away in a dingy hotel like that. There's plenty of room in the Tower, and Peter and I can work on our, uh, project down in the workshop or something."

"Well, if you're sure it's okay…" Steve agreed, trailing off.

Peter snorted beside him. "It's fine. I don't need help with it anyway…" he muttered.

Tony turned to Peter again. "I'm happy to help."

"I don't want you to," Peter informed him snidely. He grabbed another slice of pizza, glaring at each of them in turn but mostly letting his gaze land on Steve.

Steve started to look uncomfortable after a few more moments of the scrutiny. "Actually, Tony, I think it might be better for us to take a few extra days before we shake things up again."

"Good idea," Peter agreed smugly. "Paying customers are always welcome at motels."

"Hey!" Tony immediately turned to the teenager with an aghast expression. He snapped his fingers to get Peter's attention when he didn't look at Tony and hissed, "That's enough!"

"It's okay, Tony, really," Steve quickly assured, though he had put down his pizza and a look of discomfort was etched on his face. "This whole moving in thing should, uh, be agreed between all of us, you know."

"Listen to the Captain, Mr. Stark," Peter said as nonchalantly as he could. "After all, he seems to think that his opinion is always right, so it must be right this time too." He lifted his stare to meet Steve's eyes.

"Okay, that's enough." Tony stood up, grabbing Peter by the back of his neck and none too gently pulling him up. "Excuse us. We'll be right back." With that, he dragged Peter out of the room.

Peter huffed as he was hauled out the room, trying to protest. He rounded on Tony when the door closed behind them. "What the hell?" He snapped angrily.

"I was going to ask you the same thing," Tony shot back meaningfully, offering the kid a sharp look. "What the hell was that all about?"

Peter shrugged, looking away. It took him a moment to figure out what he wanted to say before he wheeled back on Tony. "You could have told me you were playing happy families again, Mr. Stark. They're criminals and you're just welcoming in them and you didn't even tell me!"

"Why would I have told you? I thought you'd be happy to finally meet Captain America and the Avengers!" Tony was barely managing not to raise his voice. "And besides, Peter, you know better than to be so disrespectful. To anyone."

"Yeah, I was happy!" Peter snapped back, ignoring the last bit of Tony's words. "But only until I thought about it more and I realized you were accepting criminals! This is… this is our Tower, Mr. Stark!" His chest was heaving.

Tony looked taken aback by the amount of emotions Peter was showing. They stared at each other for a bit before Tony finally cleared his throat. "You didn't seem to mind before, kid," he said emotionlessly. "We can't change our minds now. And besides, they're not criminals anymore. It's all worked out and—"

"How are you supposed to be safe in your own living space with criminals?" Peter snapped over Tony, interrupting him. "I don't… you shouldn't." He glowered at the floor unhappily.

"I'm safe," Tony told him firmly. "You don't need to worry about a thing. I've known these people for years now, Pete. They would never actually intentionally hurt me."

"Yeah, and I'm sure that was the situation when the Avengers broke up," Peter muttered.

"Don't meddle with things you don't completely understand, kid." Tony crossed his arms. "What you need to worry about is behaving, and not giving anyone that attitude. If you do, we're going to be having a lengthy discussion. Do you understand?"

"What if I don't want to?" Peter retorted defensively, eyeing Tony challengingly.

"If you don't behave in a mature and civilized way, then you're going to be spending some quality time in the corner and then sleeping on your stomach as a result of a sore ass," Tony said firmly. "Do. You. Understand?"

Peter dropped his eyes. "Yes," he muttered sullenly.

"Good. I'm glad we've cleared that up, Mr Parker." With that, Tony placed a firm hand on his shoulder and steered him back where the others were.

When they re-entered the room, the other Avengers tried not to stare at them. Peter felt himself blush a little bit didn't acknowledge anyone as he returned to his seat. He stared down at the couch cushions stubbornly, arms folded in a spectacular display of teenage attitude.

Tony cleared his throat. "Peter has something to say, guys."

Peter ignored him.

"Peter…" Tony prompted, a warning in his voice.

"No, I don't…" Peter muttered before slouching further down in his seat. "Sorry," he growled.

Tony opened his mouth to scold him when Steve spoke up. "Tony, it's okay. He's fine."

Peter risked a surprised glance at Steve and almost forgot that he was mad at him. He belatedly remembered and looked away again.

Tony sighed. "Eat up, buddy."

"Not hungry," Peter announced stubbornly and completely uncharacteristically. He never turned down food.

"Suit yourself," Tony said with a raised eyebrow. "What time do you have to be home by today, kid?"

"He doesn't live here?" Clint asked curiously through a mouthful of food, waving a greasy hand in the air. "I thought he had his own room and everything."

"I do," Peter clipped, tone just shy of rude. "I live with my aunt, but I sleep over and stuff here." He turned to Tony and said emotionlessly, "She's not expecting me at a particular time today."

"Do you want to spend the night then, kid? Work on some stuff together?" Tony asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No. Thank you. I have to do some stuff back at home later," Peter answered. What he really meant, was he needed to see Ned so he could vent about this. Besides, if he went home he could go out on patrol and take his anger out on some jerks on the street. Tony could have fun with his friends and Peter would do their job for them. He nearly said as much but managed to restrain himself.

Tony nodded. "Alright. I'll have Happy take you home whenever you're ready."

"I'll walk. It's not far," Peter refuted.

Tony was starting to feel uneasy but he wasn't sure how to settle the kid down when Peter wasn't accepting any of his olive branches. He tried again. "You know, I've been making some modifications on one of my suits… we could test it out after dinner, before you head out."

Before Peter could answer, Clint interrupted again. "You let a kid fly them? Isn't that a little dangerous? They're pretty hard to control."

"Yeah, well, some of us can handle it," Peter grit out. "Mr. Stark lets me fly them sometimes. Probably helps that I'm able to concentrate on all the things I need to at once." He left unsaid the unlike you that his tone really wanted to insist.

"See? Kid's a genius. Told you." Tony gave the others a dazzling smile and clapped Peter's back, though he gave him a firm warning glare when no one was looking.

Peter glared right back at him but didn't say anything else. The conversation moved on and Pete managed to sit through another hour of conversation with only a few forced answers when he was directly addressed.

Much earlier than anyone expected, he stood abruptly. The others were talking about Avengers business and it made him mad to hear them all joking and reminiscing like nothing had happened. "I need to go," he announced, cutting over something Steve was saying. "I have stuff to do and you guys have a lot to catch up. Guess I'll see you around, bye."

It took all Tony's self control not to drag him back into his seat when the others started saying bye, concern and confusion warring for dominance on their faces. "I'll walk you to the door, Pete," he decided, standing up to follow the teen, who was now strolling for the door having grabbed his school bag from by the coffee table. Damn it, the kid was hard work tonight.

Peter was near the elevator when Tony caught up with him. Before the man could speak, Peter spoke first. "It's okay," the teenager said bitterly, turning around to face Tony. "You can spend time with your friends."

Tony's brow furrowed and he followed Peter into the elevator. "Right," he said slowly. "But I want to spend time with you too, kid. You don't have to leave right now." He was feeling slightly confused — he'd thought that the kid would be ecstatic about having the Avengers back in the tower!

"Uh, yes, I do." Peter scoffed. "I'm pretty sure I know my own schedule more than you do," he muttered as he turned around, pointedly not making eye contact with Tony. "You don't even care much about me. You're just gonna go back to your little buddies the moment I'm gone and pretend that nothing's wrong."

A part of him was telling him that he was being slightly overly dramatic and selfish, but he didn't care. All that mattered to him at the moment was that things would never be the same anymore; he would never have the Tower to just him and Mr. Stark anymore. It was an end to their having fun, watching movies late into the night, playing fetch with Dummy, and helping Tony come up with ideas to help Mr. Stark with the latest inventions for Stark Industries. Even the little things he'd always thought of as stupid, like doing his schoolwork with Tony's help, he was already beginning to miss.

"Hey, hey, don't do that!" Tony frowned deeply. "Pete, talk to me. I'm not a mind reader; why are you so upset?" He was beginning to think that he knew why Peter was upset, but he wanted to hear the kid say it.

"No, I don't want to," Peter muttered, tone outright rude now. He lifted his eyes to glare at Tony mutinously. "You wouldn't understand anyway."

"Peter Parker, cut that out. You'd be surprised by just how much I understand," Tony tried again.

"Oh, whatever. Because Tony Stark always knows best, right? Who cares what anyone else thinks or feels as long as you get what you want. How could I forget?" Peter's posture had become increasingly confrontational and by the end of his speech he was practically shouting.

"Okay, you know what? I've had enough. I've tried to be patient tonight, and you've thrown it back in my face constantly. Take a deep breath, lose the disrespectful attitude, and then talk to me," Tony chided.

"Screw you and all your Avenger friends. I don't need any of you," Peter snapped bitterly.

Tony rolled his eyes and hit the emergency stop button while simultaneously grabbing the kid's arm and pulling on it hard so Peter was bent over his hip.

Peter yelped as his balance was knocked off kilter and tried to right himself but Tony had the upper hand. He brought his flat palm down on the seat of Peter's pants a handful of times, scolding as he went. He was aware that the kid was tense as a bowstring and practically seething, but a bit of the tension did leave him at the familiarity and consistency of the position.

"You do not speak to me that way!" Tony scolded, landing spanks to punctuate his words. "I've had enough of this horrible attitude." He landed three more hard swats, feeling satisfied when Peter let out a hiss in response. "Now, are you going to behave, or will we have to continue this discussion with you over my knee?"

Peter growled. "Let me up!"

Tony rolled his eyes and gave him another half a dozen swats. With each swat, he could tell that the stinging in the kid's ass was transitioning into a burning sensation, and knew that he would cooperate soon. "I'm gonna ask you again — what will you do?" He raised an eyebrow.

"I'm… I'm gonna behave," Peter gritted out, though his tone remained steely.

Tony released the kid from his grasp, pursing his lips in disapproval at Peter. He stared at him appraisingly for a few moments before saying, "What the hell was that all about?"

Peter shoved his hands into his pockets, glaring mutinously at the floor. "Can we start the elevator again?" he muttered.

"Not until you tell me what's going on." Tony crossed his arms. "I'm willing to stay here all night, kid." Let's see who cracks first, he thought to himself grimly.

Peter hunched into himself even more than he had been before. "It's nothing."

"Uh, no." Tony rolled his eyes. "That's not a good enough answer. You tell me what's going on right now. I'm not gonna deal with any more tantrums."

"They're not tantrums!" Peter scowled ferociously. "And it's literally nothing. I don't know why you keeping asking." He sounded mutinously sullen.

Tony just raised an eyebrow silently and headed for Peter, bending him over his knee again to spank him once more.

"Okay, no, wait! Mr. Stark!" Peter cried out hysterically, wriggling and squirming, breath coming out in little huffs as he tried to get free.

Tony paused in bringing his hand down midair. "Are you going to tell me now?" he asked, eyebrow raised.

"Yes! I... just, lemme go!" Peter let out a small sob.

Surprised that the kid was getting so worked up so fast, Tomy released him. "Kid, just tell me what's wrong," he said, exasperated as he watched Peter hunch in on himself once more. Softly, he added, "I can't help you if you don't tell me what's bothering you."

Peter squirmed and chewed on his bottom lip, eyes trained on the ground. It took an eternity but eventually the teen spoke softly. "I don't trust them," he admitted. "I know it's dumb cause you said it's nothing to do with me, but… I really don't trust them. They hurt you. They broke the law. I just… I can't help it, I just feel uncomfortable around them."

Once he'd started, it was like the dam had burst. "And I know that means I lose Tower time. They live here now and you have lots to catch up on and I guess I'm just gonna miss you, is all."

Tony sighed, placing a hand on his shoulder. "That's what all this is about? Oh, kid..."

Peter tenses, face heating up in shame. "See? I told you I knew it was dumb. I want to go home."

"Alright, alright, calm down. I'm not teasing. I just didn't realise this was going to be such a big deal, I thought you'd like hanging out with them."

"I do. But… that was before they were moving in here. Everything's going to change now," Peter mumbled, blinking away tears.

Tony reached out to pull Peter into a hug. "It won't change things between you and I, or that I care about you very much, Petey. I'm not going to forget about you or ignore you or run out of time for you. I promise."

Peter swallowed hard. "Are… are you sure?" he asked softly, voice cracking a little at the end. He felt stupid for crying over something like this, but he'd really enjoyed spending time with Mr. Stark! He was just worried that Tony wouldn't have time for him anymore.

"Am I sure?" Tony scoffed, still hugging Peter tightly. "Of course I'm sure, kid. Don't ever question me over something like that. You mean a lot to me, and I don't just throw away the people I care about."

Peter sniffled and nodded quickly. "O-Okay," he whispered, letting himself relax and enjoy the feeling of being hugged warmly by the billionaire. "But… Mr. Stark, I don't want you to get hurt by them."

"I won't be." Tony finally pulled away, though he kept his hands on Peter's shoulders firmly. "You can count on me, kid. I'm not gonna let them hurt me again. Does that make you feel better? Me saying that?" When Peter nodded, Tony gave a small nod, looking relieved. "Trust them. Trust me. Alright, kid?"

"Okay," Peter whispered. "Sorry 'bout crying over something stupid." He quickly wiped at his teary eyes, and flushed when he saw Tony's shirt. "And for leaving tear stains on you."

"I told you, kid, nothing is ever stupid if it worries you. This wasn't stupid at all, it was completely valid." Then, Tony's lips quirked into a smile, and he added, "As for the tear stains, it's fine. It's not like I don't have another shirt. Besides, it's just my kid's tears. No biggie."

Peter gave a small, shy smile, and Tony finally allowed the elevator to start moving again, neither of them addressing the fact that Tony had called Peter his kid. They didn't question it; besides, it felt right.

It had been almost a month since the other Avengers had moved in and things had mostly settled. Peter had befriended Clint and Wanda in particular, and was becoming much more comfortable around Sam as time went on, though he didn't understand the ex-Army man's humour sometimes. Steve, on the other hand? Well, Peter didn't really like Steve on principle. He made a point of being polite and respectful, but only because Tony was like a hawk and Pete knew that otherwise his ass was toast. Mr. Stark would kill him if he didn't make an effort. Besides, Uncle Ben and Aunt May had raised Peter to be respectful and he couldn't just toss that aside, no matter what he thought of Captain America these days.

Today though, Peter could finally get a breather from Tony's constant scrutiny and tough love approach, and it felt invigorating. The billionaire was away at a few days of business meetings and conferences, so there was nobody to get on Peter's case about his grades or his curfew or anything else.

He'd made it through his morning classes without being told off for zoning out or correcting teachers, and now made his way out to the school yard to his and Ned's regular bench. Ever since his run in with Flash at school prom, the animosity between the two had dwindled and they were now able to be semi friendly to one another.

As Peter was sitting at his usual bench waiting for Ned, Flash sidled up to it and sat down opposite him. "Hi, Peter," he greeted easily.

Peter glanced at him before returning to people watching. "Oh, hey, Flash. What's up?"

"Eh, not much. The usual, you know." Flash shrugged, and leaned back against the bench with a deep exhale. "God, I need a smoke."

Peter let out a small laugh, not completely understanding what Flash meant. "A what?"

Flash gave him a look, and repeated, "A smoke." He rolled his eyes when Peter didn't respond, still giving Flash the same confused look and teasingly said, "God, Penis Parker, do I really have to show you?" With that, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, along with a lighter.

Peter's jaw dropped at that. "Uh, w-what? Why do you — how?" he spluttered.

Flash rolled his eyes again. "The 'how' part of this isn't important, Peter. The important part is, do you want one?" He took one out for himself, lighting it up and bringing it to his lips.

Peter hesitated. He had never smoked before, knowing that it wasn't good for him. Plus, he didn't know how exactly his body would react to it, especially with his enhanced body systems thanks to the spider bite.

"Oh, come on, it won't do any harm." Flash sighed and shoved a cigarette into Peter's hands. "Here, you can even take my lighter. No biggie, I've got tons more."

"I… I dunno, Flash," Peter said, hesitating. "I shouldn't…"

"Oh, come on, Parker, it's not that bad," Flash told him with a scoff. "I'm smoking them and I'm not dead yet or anything. Plus, you're stressed and all, aren't you? Of course you are. Everyone is; it's that time of the year."

"I… okay," Peter finally said, against his better judgement. "I, um, I'll save it for later, though." He pocketed the cigarette and lighter, licking his lips nervously as he watched Flash exhale cigarette smoke.

Eventually, Peter got a text from Ned saying that he was being held up in class, and Flash decided to leave his spot beside Peter to go and wash the cigarette smell away in the restroom. So, Peter was left alone on the bench.

He pulled out the cigarette from his pocket, biting his lip as he stared down at it. God, he really shouldn't. It was so wrong for him to do this; Tony would kill him if he did it!

But Tony wasn't here.

No, the man was away for business, which meant that Peter could technically do whatever he wanted. May would be working late, as always, and what could possibly happen? It wasn't like the Avengers would spank him!

Peter pocketed the cigarette, telling himself that he would smoke it later. He had a math test last period, and he hadn't exactly studied for it. Hey, it wasn't his fault! He had got too caught up in patrolling (Tony would kill him for that too)!

Besides, Flash had told him that cigarettes helped relieve stress for him, so maybe it would be the same for Peter. It all depended on how well he did on the math test, he decided. He would definitely smoke some of his worry and stress away if he absolutely bombed it. Peter headed back inside the school with nothing else to do.

He made it through Biology, barely paying attention, then headed to his Math classroom for his test.

As he walked along the hallway, his mind turned to the test he was about to take, and he started to feel a little bit nervous. He was smart and he knew it, and in recent months he'd realized that sometimes that made him arrogant about tests, especially now that he was patrolling almost every night as Spider-Man. He grimaced as he arrived at the classroom. Oh well, it was too late to cry over it now, he thought ruefully.

Peter put his pen down and let out a breath as the teacher collected their scripts. That test had been awful. He could usually bluff his way through tougher questions but that had sucked, like a lot. He didn't need to get his grade back to know he'd bombed it. He just hoped that Tony wouldn't hear about it, or he'd get a lecture and a half from the older man.

As soon as the bell went signalling the end of the day, Peter made a beeline for the door. He knew it sounded bad but he really didn't want to bump into Ned on his way home.

Of course, he wasn't that lucky. "Hey, Peter!" Ned called breathlessly, running to catch up with him.

Peter muttered under his breath but turned back to his friend with a smile. "Oh, hey, Ned. Haven't you gotta catch the bus…?"

"Oh! Yeah. Um, I better go else I'll have to wait ages for the next one. Is it just me or did that test really suck?"

"It sucked," Peter confirmed with a groan. "I swear Mr. Collins has it in for us. He hasn't even taught us some of that crap…"

"I think that's why it's a pop quiz, Mr. Parker," an unimpressed voice spoke behind them.

Peter turned with a fake smile plastered in face, stuttering as he realised it was Mr. Collins. "Uh, I know that, Sir… I just thought the questions might be, uh, more in line with our lessons so far. No offence meant, sir…"

Mr. Collins raised an eyebrow. "I suggest you two hurry up if you want to catch the school bus. I have papers to mark," he added meaningfully at Peter's mouth opening to correct him.

Peter blushed but nodded, turning back to Ned and grabbing his friend's arm to tow him towards the bus. "Night, Mr. Collins!"

The teens scampered down the hallway and out into the schoolyard so Ned could get on the bus home. "Aren't you coming?" He asked his best friend in confusion.

"Uh, no, think I'm gonna walk. I thought I'd go past the Tower. Clint said something about showing me how to use his crossbow. See you tomorrow? You could come over to mine and we can hang out. Aunt May's working late so maybe you could stay at ours and we can order pizza?

"Awesome! Say hi to Hawkeye for me. And Tony. And Captain A-America…" Ned insisted, stuttering in his excitement.

"Alright," Peter agreed, interrupting him before anyone heard. "I will, I promise. See you tomorrow!"

He waved bye as Ned got on the bus, then turned in the direction of downtown and the Avengers Tower, hoping that the walk would clear his head and improve his mood. As he was walking, he pulled out his phone and texted Tony. Hey! On my way to the tower, can I help you with one of your projects for a bit?

Tony texted back almost immediately. Sorry, kid, I'm in meetings all day. I won't be back until tomorrow. How about you come over this weekend and we can start a new project, just us?

Peter's face fell but he quickly replied, trying to remain upbeat. Sounds good! Hope your meetings aren't too boring, Mr. S!

Thanks, kid. I'd rather be hanging out with my fave spiderling. Gotta go but I'll check in later.

Peter sighed and pocketed his phone, feeling even worse. He'd hoped Tony could reassure him and cheer him up after that test and was disappointed to realise he'd forgotten about Tony being away on Stark Industries business this week.

God, this day was really turning into a proper disappointing mess!

He began walking home, hands shoved in his pockets, when he saw a cigarette butt on the ground. He realized that he still had the cigarette Flash had given him, and he pulled it out, along with the lighter.

Peter stopped to stare at it in his hands, biting his lip undecidedly. Now that he was off school property, the chances of getting caught would be small, especially since Mr. Stark was busy. But still… cigarettes were bad.

"Oh, frickin' hell," he muttered. Ugh, why did Flash have to give him this? Screw it.

Peter lit the cigarette and brought it to his lips hesitantly. He inhaled, then coughed when smoke filled his lungs. Heart thumping, he pulled it away, clearing his throat multiple times. It felt weird.

He did it twice more until he felt like he'd adjusted more to the odd, new sensation. Clearing his throat and hoping that it would clear some of the misery he was feeling, just like Flash had told him, he began to head towards the Avengers Tower. He would still visit, even if Tony wasn't there.

He made his way to the tower, gradually growing accustomed to the sensation of the cigarette. His advanced senses made him acutely aware of the smoke curling around inside him but he brushed it away. It didn't matter as long as Tony didn't know. Besides, it was only one cigarette. One cigarette couldn't kill him!

When he arrived at the tower, he didn't even bother asking Friday where everyone was. He headed straight for the living space and flopped down onto the couch with the cigarette in hand.

He let out a huff of dissatisfaction when he realized how much he missed Tony's comments and lectures about how important school was and how he was going to get into MIT one day, whether it be by Peter's intelligence or Tony's money. He raised the cigarette to his lips again when he heard footsteps approaching.

He turned his head to see who it was, and wasn't surprised to see it was Clint. Clint was always in the living room or hanging around in the kitchen, digging through the fridge. The man stopped short when he saw Peter, but then slowly proceeded to move to pick up a magazine, though he had an odd expression on his face.

"Back from school, Peter?" he asked eventually, his face still strangely contorted.

"Yep." Peter sat up, fiddling with the cigarette. "Hey, so Clint, about that crossbow—"

"Why the hell does it smell so bad here? Clint, did you put something in the air vents again?" Sam appeared, complaining as he scrunched up his face. Steve was right behind him; it seemed as if they had just returned from a run judging from Sam's sweaty shirt and Steve's slightly triumphant expression (he had probably done twenty more laps than Sam had).

"Uh, no, for the last time, I'm not going to do that again—" Clint began to complain, clearly affronted.

"Clint, you promised you would show me how to use your crossbowww," Peter whined, standing up and almost dropping the cigarette in his hands. He quickly placed it in his lips to dust his hands off before taking it back out. "Seriously, you promised, so when are you going to show me how to use it?" Peter pouted, and headed for the elevator. "C'mon, Clint! I wanna use it!"

He turned around and frowned when he saw the three men's expressions. "Uh, is something wrong?"

Sam and Clint shared an awkward look, debating what to say. They glanced at Steve, who was looking at Peter in obvious disapproval.

Before anyone could answer him, Scott walked in from the kitchen with a plate loaded with nachos and whistled. "Wow, is he smoking? Pretty sure smoking is bad. I thought Tony was a hard ass?"

Clint groaned. "Subtle, Scotty…"

"What? It's true! If Tony was here, he'd point out to that smoking isn't cool," Scott insisted before looking to Peter with a wry smile. "Sorry, kid."

Peter huffed out a breath, although he didn't hold any bad feelings because Scott was awesome. "Tony isn't here. Besides, not like you guys haven't tried it before. Especially him…" he retorted, tilting his head towards Steve accusingly.

Steve frowned. "Excuse me?"

"Oh yeah, I know what you soldiers were like in the war with your cigarettes and your cigars. I bet you smoked ten a day."

"That would have been a little hard with how we were crawling through trenches, Peter. And anyway, this isn't about me. Scott's right, you shouldn't be smoking. Put it out please," Steve ordered calmly.

Peter looked him in the eye and shook his head, taking a long draw from it deliberately. "No." The truth was, it tasted awful, but now that he'd been told he had to ditch it, he had no intention of actually doing so.

"Peter, put it out," Steve said again, straightening up and offering him a stern look.

"No. You're not the boss of me. If you think you can just waltz back after being such a jerk, then you're totally wrong. Tony might let you away with what you did but I won't. You're an asshat and I don't have to listen to you," Peter snapped, glaring up at him.

Silence stretched out in the room at his indignant outburst. Peter stood, breathing hard, then very deliberately took another long draw of the cigarette, looking smug. "C'mon, Clint. Crossbow lesson time, remember?"

He turned on his heel, stopping dead when Steve's voice cut through the lingering silence. "No, Clint. I don't think so. He's not going anywhere until he puts that cigarette out and loses the attitude. Tony wouldn't stand for this and I'm not about to in his absence. I know I was in that ice for a while but I don't remember kids being so disrespectful back in my day."

"Not really surprising given how old you are," Peter muttered before whirling on his heel to glower at Steve. "You're being a jerk because Tony's not here to stop you."

"Uh, actually…" Clint interrupted awkwardly. "I think Tony would be stopping you, Petey. You're being a bit of a jerk yourself."

"What? I'm not. I can't believe you're taking his side!"

Scott spoke across the room, once again breaking the ice with his tactless observations. "Wow, guys. This is awkward. Tony would be pretty pissed to see us all fighting again when we just made up…"

"We aren't fighting," Steve corrected patiently. "But Peter's crossed a line and personally, I don't think Tony would be too enamoured."

"Nobody asked what you think," Peter growled. He huffed. "Tony will back me up. I'll call him and he'll kick your ass for being a jerk to me."

Steve surprised him by calling his bluff. "Go ahead, Parker. I'd just love for you to prove me wrong."

Peter glared at him for a good long five seconds before he let out a growl, barely suppressing the urge to stomp his foot. "I'm not going to call him," Peter muttered, glowering at the floor. "He's in his business meetings. I don't want to bother him."

"If you don't want to bother Tony, the best thing to do would be to behave while he's gone," Steve said simply. "And you could start that by putting out that cigarette and throwing it away."

Peter remained mutinously silent, gritting his teeth. He was contemplating his options; if he put it out, he knew it would be better for him (and his ass) but at the same time, he didn't really want to give in that easily. He wasn't a scaredy-cat who fell over himself trying to obey orders, after all, and he wasn't going to start now. Mind made up, he finally muttered, "You can all piss off," and turned on his heel to spin around and head back outside on the balcony.

He opened the door and stepped outside, slamming the door shut behind him. He frowned down at the cigarette, not really wanting to smoke it anymore but not wanting to admit it at the same time. He sighed and buried his face in one hand. God, how did he always manage to screw up?

He wasn't sure how long he'd been standing there for, outside on the balcony of the floor, when he heard the door slide open from behind him. He knew without turning around that it was Steve. The man always smelled good, goddammit.

Peter glared at the ground. "What do you want?" he muttered.

"Tony's asking for you," Steve said solemnly, holding out a phone to him.

Peter scoffed before taking it and waiting until Steve went back inside to bring it up to his ear. "Yeah?" he muttered.

"Hello to you too, kid," Tony said dryly.

Peter wilted a little. "Hi, Mr. Stark. Did you get a break in your meetings?"

"Kind of. I asked if we could take ten," Tony answered casually. "I wanted to check on my favourite spiderling."

That earned a smile from Peter, who looked down at the ground shyly. "I'm okay though, Mr. S. You didn't need to call…"

"Mmhmm…" Tony hummed thoughtfully. "Nothing you wanna talk to me about?" The truth was, Steve hadn't actually told Tony what was going on but he'd seemed adamant that Peter needed to speak to Tony about something.

Silence stretched out between them for a couple of seconds before Peter spoke. "Steve's being a jerk," he admitted.

Tony let out a soft sigh. "He is? How so?"

"He just… he's throwing his weight around! He refused to let Clint show me how to use his cross now, even though Hawkeye promised!" Peter complained, omitting the bit about his cigarette smoking.

"That does sound unfair, kid," was Tony's response, though Peter could hear a note of amusement in his tone. "Are you pouting now?"

"I'm not pouting!" Peter scowled.

"Uh-huh, okay, pal." Tony clearly didn't believe him. "So, what else have you been up to? Anything you want to talk to me about?"

"No, just Steve," Peter grumbled. "It's not important."

"Hey, don't say that now; anything that has you thinking is important," Tony told him sternly. "You can tell me anything."

Peter sighed. "I know, Mr. Stark. Thanks."

"So, are you gonna tell me what's going on, huh?" Tony prompted.

"Really, Mr. Stark. I don't wanna talk about it. I just miss you being at the tower after school; you're way cooler than Steve."

Tony sighed at that. "Has he really upset you that much?" he asked in concern.

"Not really. I just had a kind of crappy day and I guess he got my back up a bit," Peter admitted. "He just gets so righteous sometimes and it's really annoying. I told him I was gonna call you but then I didn't and I guess he felt he needed to. But I'm okay, honest…"

"If you're sure, kid…" Tony trailed off. "Nothing else you wanna talk about?"

"No, no, I'm good. Thanks, Mr. Stark. Just, uh, come back soon?" Peter stared at the cigarette in his hand, suddenly wanting to crush it and throw its remains down the tower just so that he wouldn't have to see himself holding it.

"Of course, kid."

"Yeah, okay. Bye." Peter hung up, pulling the phone away from his ear. With a sigh, he dropped the cigarette down, not even looking where it had fallen, and then slipped back inside. He found Steve waiting for him, and he dropped the phone into the man's outstretched hand, glowering.

"You had a good talk?" Steve asked in a neutral tone.

Not even pausing to look at the man, Peter stomped over to the couch and slumped down. "No thanks to you," he muttered.

Steve watched him go with an uneasy frown, starting to feel guilty. He hadn't meant to upset the teen. He pulled out his phone and sent Tony a text. He still found it hard to get his head around sending messages visually but he was getting better. Tony. Sorry I made things tense for you and the kid. I thought it best he told you about the smoking himself but I didn't realise he'd end up so upset.

A text pinged back from Tony in no time. Smoking? What smoking?

Steve frowned at his phone in confusion before sighing to himself. Well, that was just great. I thought that's why he looked so down when he came inside.

Cap, what's going on?

I'll call. Steve sighed again. He left the lounge, not wanting to have this call in front of the kid. He hit Tony's number on speed dial and waited for Tony to pick up. It didn't take long.

"Cap? What's going on over there?" Tony demanded.

Steve exhaled, unsure where to start.

"Is the kid acting up?"

Steve grimaced. "Yeah, although I'd say it's a bit worse than just 'acting up.'"

"Please tell me you were joking about the whole smoking thing," Tony said hopefully, although it was clear that he seriously doubted that it was a joke.

"Nope," Steve responded, popping the 'p.' "I mean, he's stopped now, but only because he's angry, I think. Ugh, god, Tony, he's gonna hate me when he finds out I told you."

"That's not important," Tony said grimly. "What's important is that he's not behaving like he should be. You can gladly tell him that he and I will be having a long discussion about this when I get back. And let me know if he does anything else stupid or disrespects you, okay, Cap?"

"Yeah, alright." Steve sighed. "Sorry to bother you."

"Nah, you didn't," Tony said dismissively. "Thanks for letting me know. Gotta run to my next meeting now. God, tell Friday to order at least fifty cheeseburgers on the day I get back, because I'm seriously craving them. Bye, Cap."

Steve laughed. "Bye."

Tony managed to get away from his meetings early afternoon and was excited to be home as he took the lift up to his floor of the Tower. "Friday? Where is everyone?" he asked as he ditched his bags in his bedroom ready to put away later tonight.

"Everyone is on the common floor, Sir," the AI informed him before adding after a pause, "and Mr. Parker appears to be in a standoff with Mr. Rogers."

Tony groaned, wondering what on earth had happened this time. He nodded. "Thanks, Friday. Don't let them know I'm back, I want to see what's going on first."

"Of course, Sir."

Tony grabbed a coffee in his personal kitchen, then headed downstairs to the common floor to try and break up whatever fight was going on now. It wasn't too hard to figure out what they were arguing about, Tony discovered as he entered the common floor. Peter's voice was mutinous and raised, while Steve's was clipped and terse.

"...don't even care about what Tony thinks?" Steve was saying.

"He isn't here," Peter snapped back.

"Who's not here?" Tony asked, taking a big gulp of his coffee, then wincing, because shit, he'd forgotten it was scalding hot. He raised an eyebrow when Peter froze, looking like a deer in the headlights, and cleared his throat. "What, I don't get a 'welcome back?'"

"No, I, just, I, hi, Mr. Stark," Peter stammered, eyes wide. "Uh, welcome back, I… yeah," the teenager finished lamely.

Tony couldn't help but quirk a small smirk at that. Now that he was back, Peter didn't seem to be so rebellious. He could see why; he was way better than Cap anyway, and plus, Peter was his kid, not Cap's.

"Thanks, kid." Tony plopped down at the table, setting his coffee down. "So, what were you guys talking about? Anything interesting happen while I was gone?"

"Nothing!" Peter said a little too quickly.

At the same time, Steve said, "He's out of line."

Tony looked between them, noticing with interest as Peter turned a mutinous scowl on Steve. Oh wow. He hadn't seen Peter look like that in, well, ever.

"Is that so?" the billionaire asked in interest. "What makes you say that, Cap?"

Steve took what was obviously meant to be a calming breath. "He argued about everything while you were gone. First, there was the smoking, then the skipping class, then the ongoing disrespect. Today I asked him to put his own soda can and wrappers in the recycling and he exploded on me. It's not rocket science, it's just being tidy and respecting your surroundings. I'm glad you're back," Steve admitted honestly.

Beside him, Peter scoffed angrily. "No, you've been on my case constantly. I came to the tower to unwind and you just talked at me all the time!"

Tony cleared his throat meaningfully. "Why did nobody think to mention the whole school problems at school scenario?" he asked incredulously.

"Because it's not important," Peter bit out.

Tony raised an eyebrow, surprised at Peter's tone. "I'm sorry, are you speaking to me?" he asked, crossing his arms and giving the kid a look. "Because I know that you wouldn't have spoken to me with that kind of attitude."

Peter's jaw dropped, and he spluttered. "What?! That's not fair!"

"Oh?" Tony almost laughed at Peter's feeble comeback. "Well, then, how about you tell me what's fair?"

"What's fair is that you should hear both sides of the story before you decide to give me a lecture," Peter growled.

Tony rolled his eyes and waved a hand flippantly in the air. "Then by all means, Mr. Parker, feel free to explain 'your side of the story.' Although I'm pretty sure there's not much that could help your case, especially after you smoked that cigarette."

Peter scowled and turned to glare at Steve. "You told him about that?! What the hell is your problem? You stuck up, arrogant, self-righteous asshole!"

Before Tony could scold him, Steve answered him with a calm only Captain America could muster. "I thought you'd have shown enough integrity to tell him. And quite frankly any guilt I felt for telling him went out the window after a week of putting up with your childish, petulant attitude. I don't care how many people you've helped, Peter, you're behaving like a brat. Back in my day, kids weren't so disrespectful."

"So you said. Were you such a jerk back in your day? You're head's so far up your ass I'm amazed you could see anything 'back in your day'!" Peter retorted, face flushed and chest heaving.

Before Steve could say anything, Tony stepped between them and held up a hand to quiet them both. "Alright, enough. Peter, you have until three to move your scrawny ass to your room at the Tower. No detours out the window, no defacing things on the way, and whatever you're about to say, I seriously suggest you can it before I lose my cool. Go. I'll come and talk to you separately when you're feeling a little calmer."

Peter glared at him, but Tony didn't back down. He raised an eyebrow at him meaningfully. "One."

Peter's face turned a deep shade of pink and he left the room in an angry flurry.

Tony waited for the telltale slam of the door before speaking to his AI. "Friday, is Peter in his room?"

"Yes, Sir, though I am not sure how long he'll remain there judging by his current movements," the AI answered honestly.

Tony sighed. "Thanks, Friday." He turned to Steve. "You alright, Cap?" he asked in concern as he took in the taut lines of Steve's body and the deep, frustrated frowns etched into his face.

Steve closed his eyes for a few seconds and forced himself to breathe in deeply while purposefully relaxing his body. He opened his steel blue orbs again and nodded, sighing. "Sorry, Stark. I just seem to rub him up the wrong way all the time. I just get so frustrated when his mouth runs away from him. He seems to have found more ways to speak to the team disrespectfully than you ever did and kids have changed. I'm out of touch and I just don't know how to respond without making him more mad. I let you down."

Tony rolled his eyes. "You're kidding, right? The only person who let me down, is the teenager pacing his room. The one who broke his words to me, broke rules he could recite in his sleep and who's attitude lately amazes me. I'm sorry you had to witness it. He's normally a very good kid, and I know he's wary after everything that happened between you and I but he shouldn't have spoken to you that way. Is this how he's been acting all week?"

Steve grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah, basically," he admitted. "I just didn't want to bother you. I thought I would be able to handle him."

"One day, Cap, one day," Tony chuckled humorlessly, patting Steve on the back. He inwardly frowned at how distressed and upset Steve seemed, and a sudden idea hit him. "You know, Cap, maybe that one day needs to be today."

Steve's head jerked up so fast that Tony was concerned the man had given himself whiplash. "What?" His eyes were wide and he stared at Tony like he'd gone crazy. "Oh, no. No, no, no. This is one of your crazy ideas again, isn't it?"

Tony couldn't help but let out a bark of laughter at that. "I wouldn't say 'crazy,' Cap. Maybe more like… genius? Effective? Smart?"

"Right," Steve muttered, already seeming as if he were bracing himself. "Well, what is this supposedly genius idea?"

"Okay, see here, Cap." Tony placed his hands on Steve's shoulders and squeezed. "See, Peter's been disrespecting you the entire week, not me. Well, I mean, sure, he did have a bit of an attitude when talking to me, but the bigger picture here is you. He thinks he can get away with disrespecting you and he thinks I won't do anything about it. Well, maybe you need to show him that he can't just treat people like that."

"And how exactly do I do that, Tony?" Steve sounded weary. "It's not like I can go up to him, sit him down and give him a talk about respect. He'll laugh in my face and walk away."

"Not if I'm there," Tony said grimly. "And we're far past just words, Cap."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," Tony began with a small grin at how dumbfounded Steve looked. "Sometimes actions speak louder than words, you know?"

Steve frowned in confusion before eventually shaking his head. "Oh no, come on, Tony, I know I said he deserved some old fashioned discipline but no. I can't."

Tony raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

"Tony, I don't think that would help. I actually think it would make him dislike me more…" Steve countered in defeat.

"Oh no, Cap. Believe me, I know that boy. He needs clear boundaries or it gives him far too much time to freak out." Tony reached out to squeeze Steve's shoulder. "Just trust me?" Tony requested.

Steve scratched the back of his neck and looked awkward for a moment before forcing himself to stand up straighter. "Okay, Tony, alright. I trust you. I think you're wrong but Peter obviously respects you so I'll trust your judgement. How should I… uh… well, you know?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Just come on, let's go and have a little chat with that troublesome little spider of ours," Tony tilted his head towards the door before setting off, expecting Steve to follow.

The two men headed towards the elevator, which took them up to Peter's room.

Peter was lying on his bed, tossing a tennis ball up and down in the air when they arrived. When he heard the knock on the door, he huffed. "I don't wanna talk to you ."

"I know, Pete, but we need to talk." Tony stepped into his room, beckoning someone else in behind him.

The teen spied Steve and shook his head, scowling in a display of teenage displeasure. "Get lost. I'm busy."

"You're going to be busy having this chat over my knee if you keep this up," Tony warned bluntly. He was getting fed up of the attitude, especially now he knew this wasn't the first time.

Peter's eyes widened as he realised Tony had just openly threatened him. Anger flitted into his eyes and his posture for a full minute before his ears warmed up and he looked away in embarrassment. "You can't do that," he muttered, even though he knew that Tony very well could. "Not in front of him." He jerked his chin towards Steve, who was standing a few steps behind Tony, arms crossed and watching everything happening.

"Oh? I can't?" Tony raised his eyebrows, letting out a humourless scoff. "Well, Mr. Parker, guess what?"

"What?" Peter asked warily, narrowing his eyes and holding the tennis ball in his hand firmly.

"I'm certainly not going to spank you today," Tony stated.

Peter fought a small smirk, because he knew it wouldn't help his situation. "Of course not," he snorted, "because I didn't do anything wrong." And okay, yeah, maybe he was acting a bit rudely, but he felt it was warranted, thanks to Steve's words and actions. Gosh, the man pissed him off so much!

"Well, I wouldn't necessarily say that," Tony said in a sarcastically thoughtful tone, "but think what you want to think, kid. Cap here is gonna be spanking you tonight."

Andddd, three, two, one...

The bomb went off.

"I'm sorry, what?" Peter spluttered, face going red and choking. "You did not just say that! You can't — he can't — I…" He trailed off, at a loss for words.

Tony raised an eyebrow. "But you being a brat to him all week was okay?"

"He was being a—"

Tony cut him off with a raised hand. "Enough, kid. I don't want to hear it. I've asked everyone, and nobody thinks Steve was out of line. You, on the other hand… seems you made everyone feel a little uncomfortable with your behaviour." It was a stretch, but Tony had read the body language of everyone in the room when he'd walked in to the common area and he didn't think he was stretching the truth all that much. "Added to which, you know better. I know that you know how to be respectful and not rude, petty and outright mean. I don't know what's gotten into you but it's not acceptable. Steve is going to take over now, Peter, and I suggest you behave yourself."

"But—"

"No buts. If you give him any more of your nonsense or I think you haven't learned your lesson then I'm telling you now, Pete, you'll answer to me when he's through. You understand that?"

It took Peter a long time to respond and Tony watched in interest as a host of emotions passed his face. Eventually the teen looked away and huffed out a, "Fine."

Tony nodded, offering him a sarcastic smile. "Good. I'm glad that's settled. Steve." He turned to give the blond Avenger the nod to take the floor.

Steve had been watching silently but now stepped forward, arms folded over his chest a moment before he spoke. "Peter, before I go any further, I want to know where all of this attitude's coming from. We can't move past this if I don't understand the problem."

"The problem is you're a jerk…" Peter grumbled under his breath, thinking it was too quiet to hear.

Tony opened his mouth to scold him but Steve beat him to it.

"You know, Parker, that attitude of yours really sucks. When I was your age, we never talked to adults this way. I get you having issues with me after what happened between Tony and I but this attitude isn't good enough. I've never met your aunt before, but somehow I doubt she'd like it."

"Don't talk about her!" Peter snapped as an embarrassed blush crept up his neck and warmed his face and he stood defensively, hands clenched.

"Peter." This time it was Tony's voice cutting through the room like a knife. Peter gulped. Tony using that voice never boded well. He dropped his gaze to his hands and willed himself not to lose his cool.

Steve sighed. "What I'm saying is that you're better than this. You're smart and kind and compassionate and not petty or rude or mean. I'd heard so many great things about you from Tony, he can't stop singing your praises normally. And yet all I've experienced is this side to Peter Parker, and I gotta say, I'm not a fan so far. I really hope we can get past this and I can meet the Peter Parker who is worthy of the Avengers title and responsibility." Steve knew it was a little harsh to mention the Avengers but he needed to do something to get Peter to see the bigger picture. Tony was right, Steve had a duty of care to this teenager from Queens. He couldn't just let this slide but Peter wasn't going to back down easily.

Peter didn't exactly look thrilled, but he dropped his head in defeat, realising when he was beat.

Steve watched him a moment before continuing quietly. "You understand why you're in trouble?"

Peter gave a jerky nod. "Yeah."

"Alright. Actions have consequences. Hopefully this'll play some part in helping you to make wiser choices in the future." With that, Steve took a seat on Peter's bed.

Peter froze when Steve did so, body suddenly going stiff and unable to move out of pure disbelief that this was really happening. He could feel both Steve and Tony's gazes burning into him, and he knew one way or the other, this was going to happen, but seriously? This was Captain freakin' America! America's patriotic symbol, a hero, an Avenger, and he was going to spank Peter?! That was just… God.

"Peter." Tony cleared his throat meaningfully, and tilted his head towards Steve's lap. "This isn't your first time."

Peter flushed at that, unable to stop himself from shooting Tony a slightly dirty look for his comment. The man raised his eyebrows sternly in return, and Peter knew not to push it. Instead, he turned his attention back to Steve, who was waiting for him patiently, and gulped. Licking his lips nervously, he stammered, "I… I don't think this is completely n-necessary…"

"Stop stalling." Tony's tone told him that they weren't fooling around.

Squeezing his eyes shut, Peter slowly made his way forward until he was standing directly in front of Steve. "Do we have to?" he whispered, voice cracking at the end as a result of nerves.

"Yeah, Peter, I think we do." Steve's tone was firm, and his answer came out honestly and without any hesitation. "I don't think you understand how seriously we have to do this. Because if this is the only way we can make amends and understand each other, then I goddamn will do it."

Peter gulped at the honest words and looked up at Steve with wide eyes. He so wished he hadn't been such a jerk to Steve now. He dropped his gaze again and squirmed.

Steve patted his lap meaningfully and waited to see if the teen would manage to go over his knee by himself or if Steve would have to do it for him.

Silence hung heavily in the room while everyone stayed still and all eyes remained on the teenager. Peter didn't think his face could get any redder if he tried. It took an eternity, but eventually he managed to force himself forward so that he was bent over Steve's lap awkwardly. He groaned as Steve shifted him so that his hands were on the floor, not the bed, and Peter's backside was in an upsettingly effective position to be disciplined. It knocked his balance off and made him feel all of about six years old.

Steve gave him a minute to adjust to the new position he was in before wrapping one arm around the teen's waist to keep him in place. He'd found himself in this position plenty, even as a teen, often when Bucky had had to save him from whatever fight he'd gotten himself into that day.

He raised his right hand and brought it down firmly, earning a surprised grunt from Peter. Satisfied it was a reasonable force, he swatted down again. Initially he kept his pace slow to allow Peter time to get used to what was happening, but he soon settled into a brisk rhythm of sharp swats in a predictable pattern that he knew would likely drive the teen nuts. That's what Buck had done when Steve was the one in trouble, and the blonde had hated being able to predict where his hand would fall next without being able to stop it from happening.

Peter stayed still for the first few minutes but was soon kicking and squirming unhappily. He was determined now to cry or plead but the Cap's hand hurt. Him and his stupid super strength. Somehow he was able to convey all his disappointment at Peter's behaviour in each individual swat. Peter didn't think anything could be worse than a spanking from Tony, but the Cap's hard hand was coming a close second.

Before long, a telltale sniffle sounded in the room. Steve sighed to himself, relieved to see they seemed to be making progress. It didn't stop him from landing more firm, open palmed swats to the kid's backside and thighs though.

He spoke quietly. "Alright, Parker. Why are we here?"

"Be-c-cause… because you suck…" Peter answered trying not to let his voice wobble obviously.

Steve had to smile; at least the teen was being honest. A quick glance at Tony's expression and Steve knew that wasn't what his friend thought. "Try again. And be careful what you say next; I can keep this up longer than you can Peter."

A huff greeted his words, followed by silence, but eventually Peter answered more sincerely. "Because I've been a jerk to you all week while Tony was away."

"Since you met me," Steve corrected before continuing. "But yes, that's right. Peter, I understand your wariness of me. I don't blame you for feeling uneasy and a little suspicious because in your shoes I'd be the same. The thing is, regardless of which side of the Bucky debate you're on, I did what I believed was right, and I still stand by that decision. I'm deeply sorry that it led to the Avengers being separated and that it hurt my friends, but I've always stuck by what I think is the right thing to do and I'll continue to do that even if it's not the most popular choice. It's how I'm wired. The thing is, you weren't just doing what you thought was right. You were rude, argumentative and downright disobedient. That isn't how the Avengers behave."

Peter drew breath across his lap, tensing, and Steve knew he'd struck a nerve. It took seconds before Peter was protesting again. "Avengers don't just abandon each other either!"

Steve sighed. "Peter, do you trust Tony?"

"Yeah. Course I do…" Peter answered immediately.

"Then trust his judgement. This stuff is between me and Tony. It's our job to fix it and get past it and nobody else's. Trust him to handle this."

Peter opened his mouth to protest but eventually closed it and hung his head. There was nothing he could say in defence to that, so he remained petulantly silent. Besides, no matter how much he didn't want to admit it, Steve did have a point. What had happened in the past was between Steve and Tony, and any reasonable person would agree with that. That didn't mean he liked it, though.

Peter couldn't help the stifled sob when Steve didn't let up with the spanking, continuing to bring his hand down firmly on his backside, steadily lighting up a fire. "Stop!" Peter cried out eventually in protest, wriggling. "I'm sorry! There! Is that what you want?"

"What I want is an apology that has meaning behind it, rather than one thrown out carelessly," Steve informed him sternly. The blonde paused long enough to shift him so his upper body lay on the bed, then started again.

Peter let out a groan of complaint, fisting his hands in annoyance. "Mr. Stark!" he wailed, complaining, hoping that Tony would come save him from Steve's wrath.

"Oh no, kid. I'm not going to save you," Tony answered without question. "You chose to act the way you did. This is between you two. But for the record? I agree with him. Don't apologise unless you mean it, kid."

Peter huffed, burying his face into his folded arms miserably. He'd thought being in trouble with just Tony sucked, but Steve doing this while Tony frowned at him in disapproval was far more worse.

The combination of their disappointment and the ever-building sting in his backside soon drew genuine tears but he stubbornly stayed quiet trying to keep them silent. They'd already rejected his apology so he resolved to not say anything at all and not to embarrass himself more.

Steve spanked silently for a while longer, hoping they'd be finished soon because he really didn't like upsetting the teen. He also did wanted to point out to Tony that the billionaire hadn't told him how damn stubborn the kid was. Most teens would have given in by now. Steve had been stubborn at Peter's age, determined to compensate for his lack of physical strength, but he'd have backed down by this point. Captain America really hoped that after this they could move on and start to work towards some semblance of friendship.

It wasn't until Peter began to sob harshly that Steve slowed down in his firm spanks. "How are you doing, Peter?" he asked, feeling a little concerned. The kid's ass was red, and he seemed to be feeling genuinely repentant now.

Peter just turned his face into his elbow in response to the question, feeling embarrassed that he was being spanked, never mind crying, in front of Captain America.

Steve seemed to understand, for he didn't push the matter any further. Instead, he just paused, allowing Peter to shudder with sobs on his lap, and gently said, "Do you have anything to say to me, Peter?" Unsure that he was doing the right thing, he glanced up at Tony. To his relief, the man gave him a short nod. He looked back down at the crying teenager, and sighed. "Peter?" he prompted once more.

"S-Sorry," Peter choked out through his tears, voice muffled from hiding his face. "So-sorry. Won't b-be dumb 'gain."

"Hey, you're not dumb. You're a teenager, and teenagers have a whole load of hormones and emotions to deal with at breakneck speed. I know it's hard to believe but I was a teenager too once," Steve assured him, relieved when Peter's tears slowed and he made a sound suspiciously like a snicker.

The older man sighed and moved his now warm hand to pat the kid's back in comfort. "But seriously, I forgive you. How about we start again? Clean slate, fresh start. I think we could both do with one of them."

Peter sucked in a shuddering breath and nodded, wiping at his still streaming eyes with his now damp hoodie sleeve. "Yes p-please…"

"Alright. I'd like that. Come on up whenever you're ready," Steve assured him softly. He felt very out of his depth now that it was over with.

Across the room Tony gave him a nod of approval, letting him know he was doing just fine.

Steve inwardly sighed but relaxed, relying on his instincts to help him. Eventually he felt Peter squirmed and decided it was time to help him up. He stood Peter up then stood to join him, pulling him into a strong hug. "You alright, Parker?"

Peter gave a shaky nod, wiping away a few stray tears. "Y-Yeah."

"Good man. How about some ice cream, kid?" Tony suggested from across the room.

Peter didn't answer, his eyes dropping to the floor instead.

Tony frowned. "Peter?"

"Yes sir?" Peter asked without moving his head.

Tony sighed to himself. "Hey, look at me, kid," he ordered softly.

Peter dragged his eyes up to Tony's face, taking an instinctive step towards Steve.

Tony swallowed back his surprise. "Hey, what's going on it that head of yours, huh?"

Peter shook his head with wide eyes.

Tony opened his arms out to the teen. When Peter didn't move, Steve gave the kid a nudge across the room until he was encompassed in Tony's arms a little awkwardly. "Talk to me, Petey. What's wrong?"

"You're… you're mad. You let him…" Peter trailed off.

Tony nodded. "Yeah, I did," he agreed. "You misbehaved, kid, and you and Steve needed to hash this out. If not, we'd end up right back here, Pete. But I'm not mad. You were pretty good for Steve and you settled down when I told you to, so as far as I'm concerned, it's done. I forgive you too. Now how about some ice cream, huh?"

Peter nodded, giving him a shy smile. "Baked Alaska?"

Tony chuckled. "I ordered more on my way home. C'mon."

Peter nodded with a smile, then turned back to glance at Steve.

Steve nodded with a smile. "Baked Alaska is good. Maybe we could have a bit of an ice cream war, huh? See who goes the longest without brain freeze…"

Peter grinned at that, nodding eagerly. He set off for the common area ahead of them, almost tripping over his feet in his enthusiasm.

Tony watched him go with a laugh and turned to Steve. "Think you'll bounce back as fast as him?"

"Probably not," Steve admitted in amusement, shaking his head. "Kids these days…"

"You got that right, Cap. But any man who can challenge that kid to an eating contest and hold his own will earn hero status in his eyes. I think you two are gonna be just fine," Tony answered with a smirk as they followed Steve out to the chaos they could hear in the common area as Peter set up their ice cream battle ground. It was good to be home.