The Devil With The Face of an Angel | Irondad, pepperony

Chapter 28

Peter hesitated for a moment at Natasha's question. Should he tell her the truth? Shouldn't he first ask his father what opinion he had on it? Last time Peter had told his secret to Steve, and Tony wasn't very happy about it.

But this was Aunt Nat. He trusted Aunt Nat without any doubt, and Pepper and Tony also trusted her. They knew Natasha the longest of the current Avengers team (if they don't count Rhodey), and she always tried to be there for the Stark family.

"You're right, it's not a new hairstyle," Peter muttered, glancing at the others as they watched him curiously. He didn't like it.

"You probably don't have a girl yet, either, or you'd shine like the sun," Sam chuckled, patting him kindly on the shoulder. "Or have you been with the girl for so long that you've used to it?"

"Leave him alone, Sam, and find a girl yourself," Nat said dryly, taking Peter around his shoulders. Everyone laughed. "Come on, honey. Let's go somewhere where we'll have some privacy."

"You've been dealing with something very important, right? Dad is worried. And overall there was some tense atmosphere among all of you," Peter said on the way to Natasha's room.

"We all worry. That how is the life of adults. And the life of improved adults with all sorts of abilities brings twice as much worry," she replied mysteriously, motioning for him to sit in the chair. Then she sat across from him and raised an eyebrow. "But now we're not going to talk about me or the Avengers. I think you wanted to tell me something, am I right?"

"I guess so," Peter muttered, digging his finger into the back of the chair. In his head, he tried to put the whole story together so that Natasha could understand and believe him. After all, he was still a kid. How could anyone like him have such superpowers? Wanda and Pietro were young, but Peter was even younger than them. He looked at Natasha, who smiled encouragingly at him. "I have superpowers too," he said suddenly, quite simply. Natasha's eyebrows rose even higher. "I am speaking the truth!"

"I am not claiming that you are lying to me, Peter," she said quite calmly, "you may just have to explain it to me in more detail."

He sighed. "I've got... substances in my blood that cause mutagenic changes. I have enhanced senses, strength, I'm fast and I can climb walls too."

"Wow. Have you thought about joining our team?"

Peter beamed. "Yes! I want to be an Avenger!"

"Absolutely not," Natasha said firmly. "I said it just for fun, and I'm sure Tony wouldn't agree, let alone Pepper!"

"But Nat-"

"We're not going to discuss this, Peter. If I were to fight with you by my side, I would tend to save you all the time, rather than those who would really need my help. No matter what skills you have. You're still young."

"But Wanda is young too!"

"I'm not worried about Wanda, she could kill us all with a snap of her finger," Natasha grinned. "So I guess Spider-Man will be you, am I right?"

Peter opened his mouth widely. "You know about it?"

"We saw a few videos on the internet. We wondered who it might be."

"Don't tell others, please!"

"Of course I won't tell them, it'll just be between us," she assured him, pausing for a moment before asking, "What is Pepper thinking about it?"

"Mom doesn't know about it yet," Peter murmured, looking down at his hands. "I don't know how to tell her. I have no courage! But the longer I put it off..."

"Oh, that's unpleasant," Nat murmured, biting her lip. "Well, we'll have to figure it out somehow. You should tell her before she finds out from anyone else. I think that wouldn't please her."

•••

Tony didn't look for Steve for long. He found him in his room standing by the window looking out. He cleared his throat softly and knocked. "Can I come in?"

Rogers grunted something, and Tony cautiously walked in. He took it as a good sign that Steve didn't tell him to get out of his room. He smiled at the mess on the table. There were plenty of pencils and papers on it, clean or painted. And on some, he even recognized his face. It warmed his heart.

"Are you all right?" he asked softly as he stood beside him. The Captain sighed for a long time and wiped his wet cheeks, which still bore tears.

"You know about it? Do you know Peggy died?"

"I couldn't help it. I wanted to know what upset you so much. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to invade your privacy. I just thought... it would be good if you weren't alone, Cap," he said, putting his hand on his shoulder. Steve smiled.

"Thank you, Tony. I went to see her a few days ago. It was... it was incredible. I often wonder what it would be like if things happened differently then. I miss her a lot."

"She missed you too, Steve," Tony told him softly. "Peggy was my father's best friend, so for me, she was the same as Natasha for Peter. I adored her. She often told me about you."

"I didn't know that," Steve said, lowering his head.

"My father and she missed you immensely. They both loved you."

The Captain looked at him, then smiled sadly. "I'm glad to have someone by my side who knew her and who understood me. I really appreciate it, Tony." Then he spread his arms and the two men hugged tightly.

"You know I'm here for you. If you ever want to talk about her, just say so. I love to remember her. I'm sorry I never visited her after my father's death..."

"Will you go to her funeral with me?" Steve asked quietly. Tony closed his eyes.

"Yes, I will go with you."

And so their beginning disagreements and problems were forgotten. At least for a while.