Magna Carta, Holy Grail

| you get the air of my lungs whenever you need it |

Note(s): Part one of my multi-fandom music meme; not exactly chronological, ties in with season 2 up 'til now. Also first time dipping my foot in the USM-pool, be gentle, don't bite~

Warning(s): Peter's endless insecurities and self-denial, the works.

Song: Holy Grail by Jay Z ft. Justin Timberlake

Pairing: Ava Ayala / Peter Parker – SpiderTiger (?)

Summary: He thinks she's painstakingly beautiful and the conclusion hits him so suddenly and so randomly he suspects he's going to hyperventilate any second now.

I hereby disclaim any rights.

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Peter hadn't given much thought to how casually and how much he touches Ava until Sam rather crudely pointed it out after the fight with Electro two point o': he remembers sinking into the comfortable expanse of his mattress, pulling the quilt aunt May bought for him when he was turning nine, over his torso and nestling his face into his fluffy pillow. There was a tell-tale click of his bedroom door opening, Bucket Head peeking inside with the light of the hallway on the back of his neck and offering the other teenager a shit-eating grin.

"Hey, Webbie. You sleepin' already?" He thinks he might've groaned at the redundant statement because the light from the open doorway always hits him face-first.

He probably replied with a slightly irritated, "Maybe, but that plan fell out of the window rather quickly. What do you want, Sam?"

There was probably some chuckling involved in Bucket Head's response. "Just wonderin' why you're so gallant. You do realize Ava can save herself, right? No need to sweep 'er off her feet whenever somethin' decides to go boom."

"Bucket Head, go to sleep or I'm going to web you to the Empire State." Peter rolled over, chestnut hair sticking to his forehead, and shut his eyes, in no talkative mood enough to converse about that.

Sam's words did trigger the cogs in his brain however, the gears grinding as he quickly flipped through training sessions and fights as if they were a gag reel. So he might've caught her a few times during rooftop duels or this very evening when they were escaping from the cable car gone rampart, no biggie, right? Peter concluded he'd rather reenact a Tarzan scene than allowing her to crash to her untimely death. Teammates take care of each other.

Besides, he reasons even now, if Ava would've had a problem with him 'sweeping her off her feet' as Bucket Head so pointedly dubbed his acts of heroism, she would've surely told him by now.

It's just this gnawing thought that jabs at him during the most inconvenient of times, what would Peter do when she, for some inexplicable reason, didn't mind at all?

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They unconsciously end up spending more time together after the entire 'Kraven the Hunter' episode. Ava sometimes asks him for an evening studying session and when it's her turn to do the dishes, he often offers to help dry them. With the smell of detergent hanging between them, the teens banter back and forth and with his lame puns, Peter even manages to draw a few giggles from between her teeth.

Her hands are warm and wet, wrinkled as well from soaping up the plates and glasses, and their fingertips brush a couple of times. He doesn't know why, but those meaningless touches seem to electrify him, paralyze him and when he takes the time, just a few stolen seconds and stolen glances, to regard her face, her rare smile blinds him even more than the sunlight filtering through the kitchen windows.

"Earth to Web Head. Do I have something on my nose? Because your creepy staring is starting to freak me out."

Peter shakes his head, not allowing himself to stumble and dwell on hormones, wrings the towel and smacks her side. "I was contemplating, your face just happened to be there. Right in front of my philosophical musing stare. Now get cleaning, kitty cat, I have some patrolling to do."

Her hand darts out, splashing soapy water against his shirt in retaliation. "Danny's rubbing off on you." She grabs the frying pan and starts scrubbing the stainless steel with her dish rag. "And we have training this afternoon. Or has your Yin mixed up your Yang?"

"Here I was thinking I was the comical mastermind of the series."

Ava can't resist a tiny smirk, "You have your moments."

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Hawkeye turned out to be rather cool, although he acts like he accidentally sits down on one of his more pointy arrowheads all the time, Spiderman thinks to himself as he swings home after an exhausting chase in between the skyscrapers of the Big Apple and a mad cab-ride to New Jersey to fight the Beetle. Luckily for him it's a tranquil Saturday morning, with a single stray car cruising down his neighborhood and the aroma of freshly mown grass in the air; he crouches in front of his bedroom window, ready to crawl inside and take a much-needed shower when he hears people talking downstairs, in the backyard.

"I think these blankets need four clothespins, Luke." – "Yeah, I'll give you some after I'm done with these socks."

Smiling to himself, the vigilante moves over to the back of the house, perches himself on the window ledge of his aunt's bedroom –she's probably taking her morning power walk already- and watches his two teammates hanging the white sheets outside. Luke, in a pair of gray sweatpants and a borrowed singlet which stretches tightly over the expanse of his chest, picks at the contents of a laundry basket and wipes a few beads of sweat from his forehead.

His gaze settles on Ava, her tanned skin contrasted by the surrounding white, her hair still wet from a morning shower and curling around her shoulders in slick tassels. She pins the sheets to the lines and takes a moment to bask in the morning sun. Peter should be comparing her to a lazy domesticated kitten or something when he sees her stretching her arms above her head with closed eyes. Instead, he thinks she's painstakingly beautiful and the conclusion hits him so suddenly and so randomly he suspects he's going to hyperventilate any second now.

"Hello, friend. I see you're enjoying the early morning. Would you care to join me for some yoga?" Danny calls out to him from the guest room, his entire upper-body leaning out of the opened window.

Peter can't quite help the surprised squeak when he almost loses his balance at the sudden intrusion. His cheeks are practically aflame underneath his mask and he certainly hopes nobody is going to make a spider-splat joke.

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One evening, more particularly the night where his team and the Sinister Six had an epic face-off near the Statue of Liberty, Peter decides to make a list with pro's and con's in order to sharpen his leadership abilities and have a good overview of his team members capabilities. The digits glaring boldly on his alarm clock blatantly show him that it's extremely late and his mind helpfully supplies him he has a Physics examination third period, but the adrenalin from the fight still fuels his veins so he ignores common sense. He prefers his Spidey sense anyway.

Besides, agent-slash-principal Coulson would have a field day at his sudden urge to display any responsibility. He even suspects director Fury would congratulate him and resend him the label-maker. At least Ava would be sensible about the entire ordeal and, maybe, be a little proud of him?

Peter really needs to stop thinking about Ava every now and then. Especially since his insides churn and his heartbeat accelerates uncomfortably. He scribbles down 'complete idiot' in the section of Nova's downsides and decides to leave it at that for now.

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"Are you okay?"

That wasn't exactly the reaction he was hoping for when he returned from his bonding session with his best friend Harry, but given the amount of shit that went down before the two teenagers decided to give Sandra Bullock's latest movie a try, Peter supposes there is some sense behind the question. He offers his team a tired smile, tries to shake the ache from his shoulders and dumps his backpack under the clothing pegs.

Danny looks at him with inquisitive eyes, cross-legged on the sofa and next to him is Sam, oddly devoid of sardonic remarks. Luke awaits his answer from the staircase, apparently he was going to go upstairs but paused to watch him enter the house. Ava sits in front of the low coffee table, with an open textbook and a pen in her hands.

He thinks it's touching, how they're all worried about him even though Spiderman just happened to get into their team by happenstance. "Yeah, 'm fine. You guys weren't waiting for me, right?" The skin around his eyes crinkles when he furrows his brows at the collective shaking of heads.

"What? No. We were going to watch…" Sam starts, in a loud voice obviously intending to prevent any mushy-mushy conversations from happening. He shares a look with Iron Fist and finishes his sentence with a low sigh, "Yeah, we wanted to see how you were coping, Webbie."

Ava smiles, amused at the sudden turn in behavior and glances at Peter from the corner of her eyes. Her gaze is soft. Peter hopes he doesn't start blushing or do anything overly embarrassing.

Aunt May walks into the living room from the kitchen with the ear buds of her iPod stuck in her ears. She pushes the pause button and greets her nephew enthusiastically. "Oh, there you are, Peter. Your friends told me you were visiting Harry. How is he? You should definitely invite him over for dinner."

Looking from Powerman, who proffers a knowing grin, over the rest of his team to his aunt, he says, "Sure. He just.. Has a lot on his plate right now. But I betcha' he'd love to come over soon."

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Later that evening, before he disappears into the confines of his bedroom, he walks into Ava in the hallway. She grabs his wrist gently, her fingers are slender and warm. Peter nearly goes into a coughing fit from sheer surprise.

"You're an idiot for pulling that stunt in front of the Goblin." Ava whispers with a hint of anger, but the plush pad of her thumb rubs a circle on the inside of his wrist, "I really don't get how you didn't get yourself killed by now.. But keep up the winning streak, okay?"

He so desperately wants to turn the situation into a joke, maybe start humming 'the Eye of the Tiger' or quote an obscure sci-fi movie but despite everything he just nods dumbly, praying she doesn't let go anytime soon.

Ava, not commenting on his complacent attitude, gives him one of her appreciative smirks and walks towards the guest room, the shorts of her sleeping attire running up the back of her upper-legs as she strides away gracefully. Peter swallows audibly in response, thankful for the dim lights.

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White Tiger.

pro – athletic, strategic, agile, intelligent, gorgeous

con – stubborn, rigidly sticking to the textbook, aversion to creative fighting methods, way out of my league

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"It's so quiet.." Aunt May comments, staring at the empty living room.

His forefingers follow the cracks in the glass, glossed over the smiling faces of his teammates, they trace Danny's profile, push down on Sam's grin and rub the contours of Ava's head and wavy hair fondly. Peter leans back into the cushions of the couch, cranes his head to look at his aunt and simply smiles.

He says, "They'll probably visit at the most impossible of times."

"Good. They're great kids and I'm glad you've found such lovely friends…" The corners of her mouth curl up almost wickedly and he forces himself to glance back at the picture, "Sam is so helpful in the kitchen and Danny really helped me balance my chi. Luke, oh, he was such a wonderful addition to my football team.. And Ava, well, Ava is.." She trails off meaningfully.

His Spidey sense should warn him for traps like these because she really wanted Peter to blurt out the finish of her sentence like he unconsciously did, "Beautiful and smart?"

Aunt May echoes his statement in faux-innocence. "Beautiful and smart? Interesting choice of adjectives, sweetie."

It's all Coulson's doing, he's positive.

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"You are troubled, are you not?" Danny asks him during their flight back to JFK, eyelids shifted shut and completely at ease in the expensive seats of the private jet.

Peter, leaning against the window with his temple, quirks a brow. "How so? I'm doin' absolutely dandy. Just secured your throne back in K'un L'un, smelled enough incense to last me a lifetime, had a Bruce Lee moment. Only thing I'm troubled for is a nap."

His mask lies forgotten on the table next to their comfortable seat and he resists to urge to hide back under the familiar material when Danny opens his eyes to stare intently at him.

"I chose you as my champion because I have the utmost confidence in your character." His smile is so sincere and genuine Peter thinks he's reached nirvana instantly. "Perhaps you should allow yourself the same trust."

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Iron Fist

pro – martial arts, confident, calm, king of a mystical Himalaya city, great team with Powerman, kung fu sage and neighbors with Doctor Strange

con – fortune cookie sayings & talks in fucking riddles. (he doesn't know about my (crush) interest in Ava, does he?)

note: interrogate him/ask him politely but inconspicuously to stay the hell out of my dreams.

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For a split-second, Spiderman thinks he really didn't survive his little co-op with Doc Ock and boss fight with the Venom-Goblin hybrid, because Ava is surely not sitting on his bed right now. She's in costume –uncharacteristic-, but her mask is pulled up, revealing the majority of her face –downright peculiar- and her mouth is a thin, stern line.

"Uhm, hi?" He starts lamely, wishing he had something in his hands to fiddle with.

She rolls her eyes, pushes herself off the mattress, which wobbles from the lack of weight, and closes the distance between them to envelop him in a hug. Her body is solid against him, chest to chest, nose buried in the junction of his neck and shoulder and she exhales loudly, in something close to relief.

"You were downright irresponsible. Teaming up with a criminal mastermind to take down an enhanced nutcase and almost getting lost in space in the progress. What if you miscalculated, Web Head?" Ava scolds, pressing closer to him and he places his hands on the curve of her hips awkwardly.

Peter jokes back, "I'm a certified genius, check my credentials… I do have a SHIELD file with all my accomplishments right?"

"You do have an entire webpage dedicated to your failures…" Her giggle takes him by surprise, "Nova and Deadpool are competing for visitor of the month."

They're still hugging and his heart feels like it's going to burst between the bars of his ribcage.

And then he realizes they're still both in costume and they're teammates and they're not ever, ever getting together because he's the team comedian in her eyes. Peter gently pries her arms from around his neck.

"I kind of need a shower right now. Saving your best friend's father tends to get one all sweaty and I probably stink right now, like ew, Parker respiration, and you have tiger-like abilities so your nostrils are overloaded by my smell and you're probably holding back to hurl, right? Right. So, thanks for checking on me, Ava."

Her answer makes his heart-rate skyrocket.

"I don't mind your scent, actually."

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"Please tell me you're going to make a move soon, Peter, because the UST is literally killing me."

His cheeks start to resemble a lobster, no her shade of hair color, and he abruptly drops the plastic fork into his lunch. Mary-Jane can't help the amused smirk, her chin on her knuckles and her smugness literally oozing into the atmosphere.

He quickly glances around to make sure none of his teammates or god forbid Flash heard her statement. There's an uncomfortable lump down his throat when he speaks, "I have no idea what you're talking about, MJ. Nope, no sir-ree."

"Allow me to elaborate, then." She starts, slipping into the posture of a tenacious journalist, "You have been secretly staring at a certain Ava Ayala the entire first period."

Peter scoffs, "So?"

Her response comes so quickly he almost forgot she joined the debate club a while back, "It was Chemistry, the only class you usually pay attention too. You blush whenever you two accidentally brush hands and she's the only one, aside from myself and Harry allowed to glimpse at your notes…"

"Sounds like you need a serious hobby, MJ, instead of spying on me." She promptly stabs at him with the end of her plastic spoon.

After a beat or two, the redhead asks him in a hushed tone, "Did you guys make out in the janitor's closet after the big test?"

His pupils widen to an almost comical extent. "What?!" Some people turn to stare at their table.

"Well, you might think so with the way she was pulling you out of class and you were acting so weird before…" Mary-Jane merely states flippantly although her grin stretches a few teeth each side.

"Nothing happened.." Stupid Hulk-fiasco, he thinks to himself.

"Yet."

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If even Deadpool suspects, knows he has a crush on Ava, Peter really needs to get his shit together. He was merely busy on improving his latest tracking prototype when the sound of someone banging on his bedroom window made him inadvertently drop the screwdriver. He snaps his head to glare at the intruder only to see a familiar and completely unwelcomed masked freelancer waving happily at him.

"Deadpool?! Wha.. How? No, get out.. Get out.." He starts to protest when the vigilante just smashes the glass with the hilt of his katana and crawls into his bedroom.

Of course he doesn't comply to the teen's demands and promptly plops down on Peter's bed, crosses his legs and props his arms behind his head. "Hey-a, Spidey. I'm here to file a complaint."

Debating whether having a conversation with the mercenary or forcefully trying to remove him from his house would be the most productive, Peter settles on responding with a strained, "What for?"

"I didn't get a wedding invitation, of course! And here I thought I was your idol or som'thing.. Or was that an another universe? Wait, aren't you already married? You look a bit young.. Am I in the seventies again?"

Ignoring the constant stream of nonsense coming from Deadpool's mouth, the teenager steers him back to the beginning of his monologue. "Wedding invitation?"

"Well yeah. You totes have the hots for White Tiger, right? I actually suspected you'd be into redheads actually, but I don't blame you for trying to get with my bestie. Does she still have my rose? Anyway, that rocket kid was gossiping about you two by the SHIELD coffee machine.. Oh, can I be your best man?"

"Get out."

"Maid of honor then? I look marvelous in a dress, trust me."

"I'm not dating White Tiger and I'm in no position to marry anyone at this point. So if you'd please.." Peter motions to the window, mind already drifting to how he'd explain the broken glass to his aunt.

Deadpool grumbles to himself before getting up, slowly. "One of my boxes thinks you're in denial, y'know. But whateffs, Spidey, I'm going to get me a taco.. Oh, oh, you should have your wedding in Mexico! I know this one place and okay, they have a mob problem, but it looks like a Tarantino gig, really…"

Peter face-palms.

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Eventually it's Bucket Head of all people to make the first move.

"Why haven't you two kissed yet?"

Spiderman and White Tiger were in the middle of an argument regarding the most effective strategies to use in a fight with zero gravity and at the declaration, they promptly shut up, froze. Powerman and Iron Fist decided to hit the showers a while back when the decibels started to increase exponentially, leaving the remaining three alone in the training room of the Tri-Carrier.

"What are you talking about?!" Peter nearly shrieked instead of shouted after pulling his mask off.

Nova nudges White Tiger with his shoulder and they have this weird older sister/little brother shebang going on because she seems to understand flawlessly what Sam means with his small gestures. She shoves him and stalks into Spiderman's general direction with boundless determination.

He faintly finds himself hoping that she wouldn't scratch him up like she did with his bed a while back.

Her right hand peels off the layer of white fabric and she stares straight at him, before dropping her gaze to his mouth.

Ava grabs a fistful of costume and drags him closer to her. Peter can hardly see Sam giving him a thumbs-up from behind her. Their lips crash together and it's better than his first kiss, granted, but it's mostly pure, raw emotion and frustration.

Whatever, he'll take it, more please.

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"Way out of your league, huh?" She jokes, his list crumpled in her grasp.

Peter lightly shakes his head, smiling widely "Stuff it, kitty cat. I was sleep-deprived when I wrote that."

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And, baby

It's amazing I'm in this maze with you.

I just can't crack your code.

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Penny for your thoughts?