Blood Thirst

Chapter 3

While Peter enjoyed his meal, Steve pushed Tony out of the room, making his husband look at him with a questioning look.

"I'm sorry, you were right," Steve began, making Tony raise an eyebrow. "I can't return him to his family. I mean, he was in an alley starving; they are clearly not taking care of him right. I want him to stay here."

Tony sighed. "You promised him that he could leave," he reminded him.

"I know, but I won't let him" Steve said, determined.

"Well, Peter Parker, age 15, no parents or any kind of family," Tony said, quoting the file he read. Instantly, a smile filled Steve's face.

"So he is not going anywhere."

"Honey, do you understand why he was on the streets, don't you?" Steve didn't respond, only looking at him questioningly. "You know what usually happens to orphan kids."

They knew, especially Steve. On a few occasions, Tony had managed to get some kids' files for Steve to look at. It was no secret to the coven that Steve always wanted a kid to take care of, but not one had caught his attention, not one had made his instincts go wild. But Peter did that, Peter did that before a word even came out of his mouth. Tony didn't know how, but that didn't matter.

"He's afraid of vampires?" Steve asked, but it was more of a statement.

"It killed his aunt. He probably found her dead," Tony explained.

Steve remained quiet, thinking about the possibilities. "He may not accept us," Tony continued.

"He will, I'll make sure he will," he turned to Tony. "We have all eternity." He smiled, a smile that Tony had never seen on his husband, so possessive and so determined that it scared him. They say that a man without love is more dangerous than one with love, but seeing that expression on Steve's face, Tony wasn't so sure of this statement.

"Alright, if you're sure he is the one."

"He is," with that, Steve once again entered the kitchen.

Peter had already eaten everything, cleaned the plate so that not even a drop had been left behind. The couple must have taken longer than they realized because the boy's head was laying on the table, his back raising and falling slowly; he was clearly asleep. A warm meal always did wonders for one's body.

Steve smiled at the scene, wondering what he would do next. He couldn't leave him there, obviously. He could easily carry him to bed, but looking at the dirty and certainly uncomfortable clothes made him wince.

One battle at a time, Steve didn't have the heart to wake up the kid to make him take a shower, and if he did, that would fully wake him up, making Peter probably insist on going back to the cold and dirty streets, and Steve didn't want that.

So, he did the next big thing. Carefully, he picked the boy up and brought him to his and Tony's room. They didn't use it that much; only when they wanted a bit of privacy for the other members of the coven did they use it. But being a vampire and an old one like himself, he didn't need sleep, so a bedroom was something that they didn't use that much. Despite that, it brought a sense of satisfaction in bringing Peter there.

He laid the boy on the bed, rummaging the closet to find the warmest and most comfortable clothes he could find. In the end, he found one of his old sweatshirts and Tony's sweatpants, one thing from each of them. Tony had silently entered the room; Steve suspected that he had been warning the other members of the coven about their new and permanent member.

"Help me change his clothes," Steve quietly called him out.

Together, they successfully managed to change Peter into their clothes without waking him up. Steve looked as the clothes swamped Peter's small figure, making him look even younger, even more fragile. He cooed at the sight.

Finally, he pushed the covers of the bed, tucking them into Peter's sides, trapping him in the comforting warmth of the bed.

Picking up Peter's old clothes, he left the room. He would burn them; no such dirty and cheap fabric would ever touch Peter's body.

Unsurprisingly, every member of the coven was waiting in the living room, wanting to hear more about their new member.

"I told you he was going to do it," he heard Barton's voice.

"I didn't even say anything," Steve said.

"We can see it in your faces," Steve opened his mouth but closed it again. He was probably right; even a blind man could see it.

"Alright, you can stop messing with the old man; he's got a weak heart. But it is true, we're planning to welcome Peter to our coven," Tony said, breaking the news. "But don't get too excited; he doesn't know and probably won't be too happy with it."

Peter woke up after having what must have been the best sleep he ever had. He was warm, comfortable, and, most importantly, he wasn't starving. His eyes snapped open after he processed his thoughts; God, where was he?

He remembered last night that he was so desperate that he agreed to go home with some men so that he could have a meal. They were true to their word, but Peter must have fallen asleep after he ate.

He ran his hand down his face. It was a pretty stupid decision on his part that could have gone pretty wrong. He sat on the edge of the bed, letting the covers fall off. Only then he noticed that they had changed him out of his clothes. He froze at that; had they changed him in his sleep? Had he been wrong after all? Instantly he checked to see if he was wearing the same underwear, breathing in relief when he saw that it was the same ones. Unfortunately, that didn't change the fact that Peter had to leave; he couldn't risk it anymore. Besides, he doubted the couple would want Peter to intrude even more.

He got out of bed, looking around, searching for his clothes, only to come back empty-handed. Well, he hoped no one would miss the pair of clothing.

He silently opened the door and peeked outside; the hallway was clear, and the lights were turned off; the coast was clear. He made a quick and awkward run until he finally got to an elevator. He didn't know they were in an apartment; he hadn't looked out of any window.

While he waited for the doors to open, he realized that he didn't have his shoes; he couldn't go back outside without shoes; his feet would literally freeze. He looked around in panic, trying to find something he could wear.

He watched as the numbers of the elevator went up, and in the midst of his panic, he finally spotted a pair of boots laying around; he grabbed them just in time for the door opening.

He ran inside, pressing frantically on the button to close the door, worried that at any moment someone would see him and try to stop him. Even if the couple were good guys, they would probably contact child protective services, and Peter would be shipped off to some coven and transformed into one of the monsters.

While the elevator made its descent, Peter put the boots on his feet, noticing that they were several sizes larger than his own. That would certainly be a problem if he had to run.

Finally, the doors opened, letting Peter out back into the wild.

Steve happily prepared some pancakes in the kitchen; if someone saw him, they would think that he was a new man. He had a new purpose in life, taking care of Peter, and sure as hell he would commit to it.

Unfortunately, that wouldn't last long. "Hey, Steve," Tony said, entering the kitchen, only to stop and look around. "Is Peter not with you?" he asked.

"No, I was going to wake him up next," Steve responded, carrying a plate stacked with pancakes to the table.

"Peter is not in our room," Tony remarked.

Steve stopped, letting go of the plate that shattered the moment it hit the floor. "What?"