AN: Slightly unedited. Let me know if you find any mistakes.
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The courtyard grew louder by the second. The teachers tried to maintain order, but the students were buzzing like they had collectively consumed twelve gallons of espresso. Reporters were adjusting their equipment. Security kept repeating instructions that nobody was listening to.
Gwen and Ned were talking about how many would get the sponsorship and the surprise Tony planned for them.
Everyone looked excited...
...Everyone except Peter.
A cold spike ran down his spine. His breath hitched, and his heart skipped a beat before picking up a faster rhythm. His skin prickled, and every sense felt stretched thin. He had felt danger before, but this sensation was unlike anything he had experienced. It felt as if something dangerous was approaching.
"Hey, Peter," Gwen said, nudging him with her elbow. "You good? You look pale. Nervous?"
"I… uh…" Peter swallowed. His throat felt tight. "Bathroom. I need the bathroom. Right now."
Ned blinked. "Now? Dude, what if Stark comes on stage?"
Gwen smirked. "Please tell me you are not about to wet your pants when you meet your hero."
Peter forced a shaky laugh. "Ha. Very funny. I will be back in a minute."
He moved through the crowd, carefully trying not to run. He stopped behind the school building. There were no cameras there. The faculty thought no one would want to hang out behind a smelly wall covered in mold and dustbins.
Perfect.
He crouched beside the dumpsters, opened his backpack, and changed into the suit. He pulled the mask over his head and adjusted the lens and his web shooters. He webbed the bag behind the dumpster.
"Alright."
Peter webbed on the roof's ledge and pulled himself up before vaulting over and landing on the water tank. He looked around. There were too many people and Stark drones flying around for security reasons.
He looked to his right.
Beyond the parking lot and across the street stood the old subway station. The entrance was sealed and crumbling. Metal gates covered the stairs. Dirt and graffiti marked every surface. No one used this place anymore. But it was on the side of the main road, so there were too many people and cars.
But Peter felt it.
The danger pulsed from that direction. His skin tingled again.
"Okay. Definitely not a false alarm," Peter mumbled to himself and was about to web over there to check on the threat, but...
"That thing you're feeling? You're right. There's a problem. A big one. And trust me, kid, you are not ready to punch a skyscraper-sized buzzsaw wrapped in vibranium." A voice from below startled him a little. Peter didn't even sense the person standing there, leaning on the wall near the roof door.
It was Tony Stark.
Peter stiffened.
Of all the people he expected to see on a rooftop at 9:27 a.m., Tony Stark ranked somewhere between "impossible" and "absolutely impossible with extra zeroes."
He swallowed hard. "Uh… Mr. Stark… sir… I—"
Tony pushed off the wall and walked toward him with the energy of a man who had already solved three crises before breakfast. "Relax, kid. If I wanted to yell at you for sneaking onto rooftops in spandex, I would have brought a megaphone. And a coffee."
Peter swallowed hard as a sense of danger buzzed at the back of his mind. However, Tony's calm and steady presence helped to ease his anxiety. Tony glanced at the rusted subway entrance that Peter had been staring at, then turned his gaze back to him.
"Before you attempt to tango with whatever is sitting under that station, let's have a chat." Tony gestured at him. "I have been following your work for a while now. You help people. You listen to your instincts. You try not to break stuff unless absolutely necessary. It is good work, really good. But you are also a fifteen-year-old unlicensed vigilante who is one concussion away from turning into a cautionary tale. So let me ask you something simple: why not register and get a proper license? That way, you'll get support from the SHIELD and a stable payment."
Peter's voice came out tight. "Because I do not want to worry my uncle and aunt. They have enough to deal with. Then my parents just woke up from a coma, thanks to your cure. Now, if they found out I had powers and got a license and was fighting crimes and other supervillains, they would freak out completely. They would not sleep for a month. They would probably lock me in the house. It is a whole thing."
Tony lifted his chin in reluctant agreement. "To be fair, they have a point. If I were in their shoes and my kid was jumping off rooftops, I'd have a panic attack every six minutes." He paused for half a beat, his expression softening into something knowing. "But someone once told me that with great power comes great responsibility. Annoying phrase. It sticks."
"I know. That's why I'm doing what I can," Peter replied.
Tony reached into his jacket pocket. Instead of a pen or a drone remote or some weird Stark gadget, he pulled out a single red glove. He tossed it lightly. Peter caught it on instinct.
"Take that suit off and put on the glove, Parker."
Peter let out a groan into his mask. "Of course you know." He pulled the mask up and off his head. His hair stuck out in all directions.
Peter stripped out of his homemade suit. He was standing in his underwear.
Tony chuckled. "Really, now?"
"I can't swing properly or stick to the wall with clothes on. Like when I need to stick to my back. It's slips," Peter explained.
"Clothes ain't got anything to do with it. I'll explain it later. Now put on that glove," Tony said with a sigh.
Peter puts on the glove and it fits perfectly.
He looked at Tony. "Alright. Now what?"
Tony smirked. "Say suit on."
Peter said, "Suit on."
The glove activated instantly.
Red and gold nanites surged out like liquid metal, racing up Peter's arm, across his torso, over his legs, his throat, his jaw. Within five seconds, he was fully covered. He flexed his fingers and watched the gauntlet flicker with reactive circuitry. Before his eyes, the HUD activated, followed by the suit's AI.
"Woah…" he whispered.
Peter looked around in excitement. The suit felt light as a feather, and every detail around him was being displayed on his HUD. He looked at his wrists and saw multiple web customization options. But most options are locked.
Tony crossed his arms and gave a satisfied nod. "Welcome to the upgrade package, kid. And before you ask—yes. You're going to need it. As for the web and modes, they will unlock over time as you master your power and the suit. Just follow the training program I've uploaded in the suit. The AI will guide you if you are in danger."
'This is a dream. Nanite suit! SO COOL!' Peter touched the chest emblem, marveling at how the material shifted under his fingers. "I don't know what to say."
"Say thank you after we stop a giant robot and a cyborg," Tony said simply. "Bad guys rarely wait for sentimental speeches. And we've waited long enough." He tapped his earpiece. "Mystique, take the stage for me, please. I got an incoming cyborg to deal with."
Tony cracked his neck and tapped his watch. The nanites surged out and formed his new suit. Model S1. This suit was different from his previous suit. This one has a matte white and blue accent with a dark blue Arc Reactor. The majority of the weapons and shielding system in this suit were built using the Space Gem's energy, thus the blue color.
'Time to field test the suit.'
He looked toward Peter. "Let's go."
The repulsor flared as Tony shot up into the sky and made his way toward the subway. He activated the scanner and detected the Cyborg, placing charges around the gate. He's planning to blow up the place.
Peter followed behind him. He jumped down the ledge and started webbing toward the subway. 'So fast! And the display is so helpful. I won't have to worry about colliding with pegions midair anymore.'
Tony stopped above the subway and aimed his palm at the gate. He adjusted the targeting system and shot. A blue last of repulsor beam shot out and hit the subway gate. But instead of causing an explosion, the bricks, metal, and everything around the gate were simply vaporized.
Peter swung over and landed on top of a light post.
"There are too many civilians here, Mr Stark," Peter said as he looked around.
"Oh, don't you worry about that," Tony said. His eyes glowed with a blue hue as the space around them rippled. He pointed his finger at the giant robot that the cyborg just crawled into. "Lock on!" Then he looked toward Peter and locked onto him too.
In the blink of an eye, they disappeared and then reappeared in a desert.
Peter fell on his butt. For a moment, he felt hazy, but as things cleared, he stood up. "Wait a second? Was that...?"
Tony nodded. "Teleportation. And you are going to learn to use your boosters here since there ain't anything to webbed onto."
"STARK!" The Cyborg's voice boomed from within the armor. "I'LL KILL YOU!"
"Haaa... Same dialogue. They never get tired," Tony sighed.
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