Peter Parker and The Avengers: Wrong Number AU

46. Scars

With Peter:

That night was hectic. Every single one of the heroes had come to the Tower immediately. Right now, Tony and Natasha were explaining everything to everyone, as Peter laid down on the floor, Wanda soothingly running her hand through the boy's hair. Tony and Shuri had spent most of the time questioning Peter about his suit.

"So you made that all by yourself!?"

"And that's why you have an AI!?"

"Yep! Ned and MJ actually helped with a lot of it! I would still be in a hoodie and shorts without them!"

Tony beamed.

"Well, maybe we should give you an upgrade. I'm sure Ned and MJ would be a great help too."

Peter's eyes lit up and he sat up.

"Yes! Can they come over tomorrow!?"

Tony smiled and nodded his head, ruffling the boy's hair.

"Course, kid. Just- uh, We should make sure you're good to do it, kay?"

"Okay!"

They kept talking until Nick Fury walked in. Peter's eyes locked onto him, his pupils becoming slits. Fury smirked and joined the circle.

"Spider."

Peter's face was emotionless.

"Fury."

"I've got a few questions, Romanoff."

"Shoot."

Fury sat down on the arm of one of the seats, facing Peter.

"How'd you cover it up?"

Peter tilted his head to the side, smiling.

"Whatever do you mean?"

Natasha snorted and few others did as well. Fury rolled his eyes.

"Don't give me the innocent smile, kid. How'd you hide all of the scars?"

His smile fell a bit.

"That's kinda hard to explain without getting yelled at by literally everyone in this room."

Tony glanced at Fury before looking at Peter.

"You can tell us, Pete. We won't get mad or yell."

"You'll worry about me."

"We already do."

Peter sighed before locking eyes with Fury.

"Simple. Stones."

Fury tilted his head, crossing his arms.

"What?"

"Stones."

"The hell does that mean?"

Peter sighed, before lifting his right arm, the one with all of the burn scars. He squeezed it into a fist, shutting his eyes tightly. He rolled his wrist and let it spring open. Doing that simple action revealed 6 different colored stones in his hands. Everyone's breath hitched, their eyes wide. Fury posture changed, his arms falling and he sat up more.

"The Infinity Stones."

"Space. Mind. Reality. Power. Time. Soul. All six."

He sat up, crossing his legs. The hand that held the stones moved and scratched the back of his head.

"They, uh- Kinda got stuck after the snap. I tried to get them out to give them back... Seeing as they can really do anything when combined, I figured I could at least hide the injuries and scars. Then people at school wouldn't, ya know, know everything..."

Wanda wrapped her arms around the boy's torso, hugging him. She gently rested her chin on his shoulder.

"Is... Is it painful...?"

Peter smiled a bit.

"Oh, yeah. It's almost unbearable. Honestly, if I focus on it, I end up crying. I also kinda had them dull it as much as possible, so it's more like pressure."

"Doesn't that just make the pain worse in the long run?"

Peter shrugged.

"Probably. Never really had a thing to help it... But it's okay! I got used to it!"

Tony rested his hand on his son's shoulder.

"Pete... You shouldn't be used to that... How'd you try to get them out?"

The boy looked down at his hands, mumbling.

"Bad ways..."

Wanda squeezed him, before pulling away. Tony squeezed his shoulder lightly.

"You're too good for the world, kid."

Natasha ran a hand through the boy's hair, her mind racing.

"Peter..."

"Yeah?"

"You're hiding a lot from us... Aren't you?"

Peter's body visibly tensed.

"Uh- No? I mean- Not really?"

"You're my kid. You're capable of being as secretive as me. You grew up in HYDRA and are an Avenger. We're all more alike than you think. If you don't wanna talk to all of us, you don't have to, but it may be smart to go to one of us, okay?"

He nodded his head.

"Okay."