#quasific

[ursafootprints]

today on "5k worth of a fic idea that I constantly spin around in my mind like a rotisserie chicken but am not invested enough in to actually write:"

Identity porn omegaverse dystopia AU; Peter is an infertile omega who, despite May's attempts to give him the best chances possible by scraping by to get him an education in both domestic skills and academics, has pretty much zero prospects for his future. Sure, she'll take care of him herself as the household alpha for as long as she can, but she knows a time will come when he'll be on his own, and she knows what happens to infertile omegas-- no matter how wonderful of a housekeeper or nanny or tutor she makes him into, who's going to hire him for that in earnest when he could be used for other things on the side, and who's going to marry an omega who can't give them children?

So one day, she’s helping clean up after a charity event for F.E.A.S.T. that was sponsored by Stark Industries, and she accidentally wanders into a back area and overhears something she's not supposed to through a door. Tony Stark himself, venting on a phonecall to a friend about how the executive board is starting to put real pressure on him to marry if he's going to continue to lead SI-- the public is starting to lose faith in him as a good alpha when he refuses to settle down with a beta or omega and share in his gifts as a protector and provider, yadda yadda, and no matter how much he argues that he's being a protector and provider for the whole country through his work at SI they aren't letting up, and he doesn't even want kids and he doesn't want to saddle some poor omega with the burden of being Mr.-or-Mrs. Stark and everything that goes with that, and they're even implying considering a motion of no-confidence, and and and--

May stands there and listens, and thinks about how she doesn't know Tony Stark personally, but he's made the news before by actually hiring highly-educated omegas (from overseas, where that's permitted) for research positions at SI, and she knows that he funds multiple different charities for omegas in distress, and--

She doesn't like being a charity case, but she does have an omega in distress. So she prepares her speech in her head, and once Tony's off the phone she steps into the room with him and closes the door behind her, and she lays it all out.

She has an omega nephew who's infertile, and he's going to be turning 18 in only a few short years, and she already can barely afford to take care of the both of them even with the tax breaks from claiming him as a dependent. So when he turns 18, sooner or later he'll have to go to work, and being an infertile unwed omega with no prospects means that he'll be nothing more than a glorified prostitute in any position he's hired for, no matter what his supposed job title says. He has the skills to be the perfect househusband, or hell, even a lab assistant if Tony doesn't mind training him up a little, he's smart and he's as educated as May could make sure of, and fine, yeah, he's pretty. And he's on the brink of a life of misery, and May does not want that for him, to the point that she's willing to ask for help from an alpha that she doesn't know and has no reason to actually trust, but if what Tony needs is a sham marriage where he'll get to prove he actually does have all those necessary alpha instincts that make him a good leader, without the expectation or even the possibility of children--

Tony cuts her off eventually, initially disgusted that he's being offered some kind of child husband as a solution to his problems and that May's apparently willing to pawn her nephew off on the nearest rich scumbag, but May straightens her shoulders and makes it clear: she would continue to scrape by for Peter as long as possible, but a day is going to come when that's not going to work anymore, and as much as it hurts her to do, giving Peter away to someone that at least has an incentive to treat him well is the best option she has. She puts it back on Tony: she's only offering Peter to some rich scumbag if he is one, so is he? Or is he actually willing to put his money where his mouth is and protect an omega in need, and help himself out in the process?

Tony sends her away without answering, and she's deflated over it for all of a day, because the next day she gets a phonecall to arrange a first date.

Peter is nervous when May explains it to him and apologizes for arranging things without his input, but also thrilled, because one of the things that May left out when she was describing Peter to Tony was that Peter is huge fan of his. Even aside from the fact that marrying Tony might genuinely be an escape from a very grim future, having Tony Stark as a husband is just unbelievable to think about, after Peter had all but given up on the idea of getting to be married at all once his infertility was diagnosed. It might be nerve-wracking too, marrying someone over twice his age that he'll barely get a chance to know before the wedding, and Peter hopes and hopes that Tony is as good of an alpha as he seems to be from television and magazines, but-- he can't help but be excited.

So he meets Tony at the tower for a lunch date, and Peter does his best to present himself with perfect manners and deference and charm because he doesn't really know how to put his best foot forward otherwise-- Tony's rich enough to have staff for the cooking and cleaning and homecare even if Peter wasn't any good at it, and after you take that and minding any children out of the picture Peter doesn't really know what he has to offer as an omega. (Well, he does, but Tony's expression turns sour at even the slightest hint of flirtation, and Peter doesn't know whether to be relieved that Tony obviously isn't after him just for his capacity to take a knot or terrified that maybe Tony isn't interested in him at all.) But then Tony directs the conversation toward Peter's studies instead, and-- Peter leaves still feeling unsure over Tony's feelings, but during that part of the conversation Tony did at least perk up and ask a lot of questions and even smile, so that's something.

Their next meeting is more of a business meeting than anything, so May is a bigger part of the conversation than Peter is. She negotiates the potential marriage contract aggressively in Peter's favor, to a point that even Peter is shocked by-- they don't even have a dowry to offer, so their bargaining power is next to nothing-- but Tony just shrugs and accepts all of her conditions, and even makes suggestions that May and Peter don't think to ask for.

And after agreeing to draw up a contract that includes all of May's demands, Tony turns to Peter and explains exactly what being Mr. Peter Stark will involve-- the incessant gossip and prying into Tony and Peter's private life, including Peter's infertility, the criticism from the press on Peter's looks and clothing and behavior every time Peter goes out in public, the fact that a lot of the people Tony has to keep company with are not at all progressive about omegas and Tony will do his best to protect Peter from that, but shutting the bullshit down in the aftermath won't shield Peter from having to hear it in the first place, the fact that Peter might find himself lonely with the huge shift in class if his friends grow distant or fake once he has money, etc. etc.

He makes it clear that he wants to be absolutely sure that Peter knows what he's signing up for, and that Peter's really thought it through before anyone signs anything. And Peter is touched by the gesture, but of course none of that is anything near as bad as what he has waiting for him otherwise, so-- a week later the paperwork is finalized and signed, Peter has his first kiss in front of his aunt and Tony's closest friend, and he becomes Tony Stark's husband.

He's nervous but not scared when Tony takes him to his new home and gives him the tour. He hasn't known Tony long, and he's heard the horror stories of alphas that were sweet and adoring right up until the wedding night, but-- Tony had been so concerned about Peter's comfort when they were negotiating the contract, and it even included clauses that would allow Peter to leave him, with something called alimony, so Peter feels pretty secure in the thought that Tony will at least be gentle with him, if not actually-- passionate.

But then Tony leads him past the bedroom with nothing more than a quick peek and a, "This is my room; feel free to find me in here if you need me," and takes Peter to another room down the hall where he stops and says, "Here's yours. The movers got here earlier, so feel free to change things around if it's not set up how you want it, and I got some new things for you that you'll need."

The 'new things' turn out to be a collection of beautiful suits and dress shoes and other accessories, and not-- what Peter thought they might be-- and the room is fully set up and organized, Peter's trinkets and tech scraps sorted into tasteful bins or proudly displayed. Peter's twin bed from his apartment with May has been replaced by a queen, and that he was expecting, but the bedding is a close match to what he had before, and the whole thing gives the impression of a stylish update to his childhood bedroom.

He's flattered and touched and a little embarrassed-- the room doesn't exactly scream 'married man,' but he does love it, and it was such a sweet gesture on Tony's part-- but Tony brushes off his breathless thanks in favor of talking about their plans for tomorrow. Tony wants to take him shopping-- Peter can wear whatever he wants, Tony says, but he thought Peter might appreciate some new casual options now that he was married, and they can go back to the bespoke place that Tony had given his measurements to for the suits if Peter wants some more formal options as well-- and then maybe to lunch, as a low-key introduction of the new Mr. Peter Stark to the world before they start having to tackle galas and red carpets.

And Peter is beside himself with gratitude and awe at Tony's thoughtfulness, and rapidly losing even the expected jitter of first-time nerves the longer they talk, and he makes his smiles soft and shy and inviting as the conversation starts to wind down--

But then Tony just claps him awkwardly on the shoulder with a, "Well, good night," and goes off down the hallway to his bedroom, leaving Peter lingering confused and a little disappointed in his own doorway without even a kiss.

At first Peter thinks Tony is just being overly-conscientious of Peter's comfort, so he does his best to show Tony that he's perfectly comfortable and that he trusts Tony and he's ready without being overly suggestive about it-- he still remembers how Tony reacted when Peter tried to flirt with him on their date-- but three days into their honeymoon week, Peter has met several of Tony's friends and eaten in fabulous restaurants and bought enough new things to make his head spin, but he still hasn't even been scented, much less anything else.

So that third night, he takes a risk on the idea that Tony needs him to be more overt about communicating his comfort, and when Tony tells him good night Peter leans in for a kiss. Just something chaste, nothing that should put Tony's hackles up if he finds immodest omegas a turn-off-- but Tony actually puts a hand against his shoulder and leans away, and Peter's stomach drops to his feet.

"I'm sorry," Peter apologizes immediately, weakly, chilled to the bone by what he can only interpret as the disgust in Tony's expression. Tony-- Tony wasn't affectionate, but Peter had never thought for a second that Tony hated him; it didn't even make sense that Tony would hate him when he had been so kind. "I'm so sorry-- I didn't-- I thought--"

"No-- Peter, you're fine," Tony sighs, but he doesn’t drop his hand from Peter's shoulder, holding him firmly at a distance. "I'm not-- we're not doing that. Okay? It's nothing personal; you're just too young for me."

"But I'm your husband," Peter says blankly, not quite processing what that could possibly mean.

"I know, and the fact that that's even allowed is an absolute failure of our legal system," Tony says with a grimace, finally letting go of Peter but shifting back two steps. "Look, I'm-- did your aunt not talk to you about this? I'm going to be a good alpha for you, you can do whatever you want and I'll make sure you stay safe and you have whatever you need to be happy, but this is just an on-paper thing, kid. You don't have to put yourself out there to get abused by knothead alphas; I don't have to bring kids into this world to screw up; we both get to have society see us as a healthy pair of red-blooded Americans mated to a different designation just like god intended. You don't have to do anything for me that you don't want to."

And Peter had known that it was mostly political-- well, that it was all political; he doesn't kid himself for a moment that he actually has anything to offer Tony that the man seems to be interested in-- but he hadn't realized the extent to which they weren't even going to pretend. People got married for political reasons all the time, but they still made the best of it-- they were still affectionate, they were still intimate, they were still partners--

The words 'what about my heats' almost make their way out of Peter's mouth before he remembers to keep things focused on his alpha's needs, not his own, and he says, "What about your ruts?"

"I'll handle them the same way I have for the last thirty-something years of my life?" Tony shrugs, brushing the idea off like it's nothing, but he must see the lingering conflict in Peter's expression. He sighs, and awkwardly ventures, "And for your heats... You can handle them however you have been so far, or you can buy some toys, or-- hell, if you want to find a strapping young alpha to help you through them, that's fine with me."

Peter is horrified.

"You want me to cheat on you?"

But Tony is just as dismissive of that as everything else, and he just says, "There's no fidelity clause in our marriage contract."

Peter doesn't know how to feel. Being with Tony so far has felt like a dream, and this-- this is still so much better than the alternative, this sham half-relationship where he's apparently meant to be-- Tony's ward moreso than his actual partner, so he knows it's entitled, he knows he shouldn't say it and that he's still making out like a bandit regardless of Tony's answer and he shouldn't even expect anything else, but--

"Are you going to cheat on me?" he asks, voice tiny, and Tony goes still.

It takes him a long time to answer. Enough time that Peter has started trying to acclimate himself to that reality-- being one of those omegas that everyone looks at with pity and shakes their heads over, whose alphas come home every day smelling like someone else, and-- well, it wasn't like anyone had ever been going to believe that he was enough to keep a leash on Tony Stark anyway, so it's stupid to be upset about it; people were going to assume Tony was cheating on him whether it was true or not. He can deal with that. It's fine.

"No," Tony says finally, slowly. "I-- kid, I'm sorry, I thought you knew how this was going to work. But no, I'm not going to cheat on you. The whole point is for me to be a good alpha to you, not to make you miserable."

"What about me being a good omega to you?" Peter asks, pressing his luck; his knees are already weak with relief so he doesn't know why he can't keep his mouth shut and stop talking back, but he's just-- in shock.

Tony grimaces again, shaking his head, and says, "I don't need you to be a good omega to me, kid; I'm a grown man and I can take care of myself. What kind of person do you want to be? Do you want to-- study science and learn to build computers, do you want to design new LEGO sets, do you want to do music or travel the world or run charities like your aunt? Worry about that. Figure out what you want to do and tell me and we'll make it happen, but don't worry about me."

And it is a dream come true, being told he can be or do whatever he wants-- who said stuff like that, who let their omegas behave that way?-- but Peter is still stuck, because--

"What if I want to worry about you?"

"You don't," Tony says bluntly, such an abrupt shutdown that it doesn't even hurt. "You've just been told that's the only thing you're good for your entire life, so you think it's what you're supposed to do, but it's not true."

And Peter-- doesn't know whether to be offended, not that he could act on it even if he did. It is offensive, being told his own mind, but he can see that Tony's frustration is for him and not at him, and that this is Tony trying to-- be sweet, somehow, in his own way--

Tony says, "You have so many better things you could be doing than wandering around after me in case I need something, all right? I'm a big boy; I can get my own snacks and pick up my own socks. So let's figure out what your 'better things' are."

--And Peter is still utterly befuddled by it, and doesn't really understand what Tony is getting at with how he's been essentially groomed to be obedient/deferential and suppress his own needs in favor of his alpha's, and he's still nursing a little bit of hurt and disappointment and grief that Tony doesn't want him at all and that their marriage is nothing but a mask all the way down, but.

They spend the rest of their honeymoon week with Peter trying out different things and getting different experiences to see if he likes them, and by the time Tony goes back to work, Peter has a private tutor to help him get an education past the last level that was available to him as an unmarried omega, and his own workspace in the apartment for his tinkering, and a personal chaperone so that he can go to whatever museums or expos he wants with an extra layer of security beyond what just his wedding ring provides.

It works, even though it still chafes Peter a bit to be treated essentially as a foster child instead of a husband, especially when he's in heat and Tony tends to him like an alpha parent does for an omega child instead of like a lover, and especially when they travel overseas and Tony actually takes his wedding ring off and won't introduce Peter as his mate.

("I'm not trying to cheat on you, Pete; things are just different here," Tony explains, and Peter doesn't get it because everyone already knows that Tony Stark is married and who to, but-- things are different overseas, and it is a little bit thrilling to see omegas wandering around so freely, living whatever lives they want to lead, and Peter is too nervous to go exploring without Tony or Happy anyway but the idea that he could is incredible.)

But they fall into a routine, and Peter's still so grateful for getting to live a life alongside Tony even if it isn't exactly what he had pictured.

And then-- and here's why the "not going to actually write it" disclaimer, 3k words in, because that would allllllllllllllll just be set-up for:

Peter goes on a tour of the Osborn building as a part of his science education, and he's trying to get more comfortable with not needing a chaperone when he's out in public because maybe Tony will start treating him more like an adult if he tries to be more independent, so he doesn't stay put and wait while his tutor is in the bathroom, aaaaand he gets bit by a radioactive spider.

And as he's realizing in the aftermath how it's changed his body-- how he's strong now, stronger than any alpha, stronger than ten alphas-- he starts... thinking about things. About all those vigilantes he's heard of, out on the streets, putting themselves at risk to protect people. About how many times he's had to walk past omegas with black eyes and 'wedding rings' that they wore around their necks, his head lowered in vicarious shame. About how maybe-- if he was brave enough-- if he could shake off that nervousness that told him he needed a chaperone, that he was doing something wrong by being an omega out on his own--

So he does.

Tony bites his tongue about it when Peter starts going out on his own, because he's stressed to Peter over and over how he wants Peter to do whatever he wants, and he genuinely doesn't know where the line between 'controlling alpha' and 'responsible adult' is when he's married to a literal child, but he relaxes when Peter starts coming back bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and thriving with his new independence.

...Until he sees enough clips of this "Spider-man" that it piques his interest, and does enough research to figure out who it is.

He and Peter fight about it, which is wild and new because Peter never actually talks back to him, raised with those perfect omega manners, and only ever gently questions Tony during those moments where all Tony's doing is trying not to treat him like a piece of property.

But Peter throws all of that back in his face now, arguing that Tony is the one who always says that Peter should do what makes him happy, he should do whatever he wants, and he shouldn't base his entire life around what he thinks Tony wants because he's his own person, and this makes him happy, this is the 'better thing' that he can be making of his life if Tony's not going to give him the dignity of at least pretending he has any value as a husband--

And Tony doesn't know how to argue about it, because he has said all those things, but Peter is also a child and it's not right for him to be throwing himself around putting himself in danger like that, and-- and also he didn't know Peter was so fucking bitter about Tony not treating him as an actual spouse, and he hates that for Peter because it's not going to change anytime soon but it's also fascinating, somehow, to hear Peter be sharp with him after nearly a year of nothing but polite deference--

He rubs a hand over his face and says, "Pete, if any of those alpha criminals get their hands on you--"

And Peter takes a liberty he's never taken before-- he hasn't tried to touch Tony on his own initiative at all since that failed attempt at a kiss, except to shrink against his side when he was uncomfortable in public-- and takes Tony's wrists gently in hand and walks him back until Tony's pinned to the wall without a single hint of strain, and he just says, "Try."

He's not mean or even condescending about it, instead watching Tony with a plaintive plea for Tony to understand. So Tony accepts the challenge, and-- he's seen the videos, he did know how fucking strong Peter had to be to do those things, but it's not until he's struggled fruitlessly against Peter's grip to the point that he's breathless with it that it really, truly sinks in.

So then he's standing there, red-faced and panting and pinned to the wall by Peter's unfaltering grip around his wrists, and he registers the way that Peter's expression has changed, all dark-eyed and flushed even though holding Tony in place clearly wasn't a strain for him at all, and he registers how close they're standing to each other, and he registers how heavy Peter's scent is in the air, all warm honey sweetness--

And he says, "All right, fine, you win," because he suddenly needs to not be having this conversation anymore.

He does take some steps, though. He builds Peter a better suit, and he loads it with an AI to take care of him and to alert Tony if Peter starts getting in over his head. And Peter accepts it with genuine gratitude, and it helps Tony feel a little better, but-- Peter gets hit so hard sometimes, and there are so many situations where Tony wouldn't even have time to intervene before Peter could be critically injured or even dead on the spot, and Tony doesn't honestly know what he thinks he would be able to do about it if Peter did get in over his head, it's not like he has super powers--

But then he gets to thinking, and in all honesty, it's not like he needs actual superpowers, is it? When he could just build himself something. Something that would let him actually help Peter while he was out there, fighting for the good of a world that would've thrown him to the wolves in half a second if Tony hadn't intervened, if May Parker hadn't had the strength to ask for help-- and if for some reason Peter seems to hate it when Tony actually speaks into his heroing, like it's some kind of insult that Tony wants him to be safe, maybe he'll accept some help from someone else--

Peter doesn't know what to think of Iron Man when he comes on the scene, at first. It's a little irritating how often he tries to tell Peter to hang back, when he clearly doesn't even have the same amount of experience that Peter does, but it's not too long before Iron Man's deferring to Peter instead, and then it's not too long after that that they become a pretty good team. And once Iron Man learns to treat him as an equal, Peter finds that he's funny and thoughtful and sweet, and he tells Peter whatever he wants to know about how the armor works, and--

Peter has never for a second actually considered exploiting the lack of an infidelity clause in his and Tony's marriage contract. But there is something a little-- addictive, about having the respect and attention of this brilliant armor-clad alpha, when his actual alpha still treats him like a child, and he starts... thinking.

And Tony has never for a second actually thought of Peter as an actual mate. He's too young; that would be-- disgusting. But-- Peter's almost an entirely different person in the suit, or maybe he's just an entirely different person when he's not with Tony-- his alpha-- because Spider-man is all sass and vinegar and unyielding strength of character, and Tony wishes that Peter would bring some of that home with him instead of the return of his unending soft-spoken deferential politeness, because if he did--

If he did--

On second thought, Tony's not going to think about it.

[ursafootprints]

I have all these headcanons for what a public Tony/Peter relationship might look like in the press/court of public opinion etc. but I don't have a fic idea to attach them to so I'm just gonna post them here:

- the popular take at the beginning of their relationship is that it's Tony going back to his playboy ways as a midlife crisis and Peter just happens to be his newest arm candy/sugar baby, but there's some like, general confusion over the idea that Peter is just Some Grad Student At MIT (if an admittedly cute one) rather than younger-Tony's parade of models and starlets

- it's assumed that Tony will drop Peter pretty quickly, so there's some further confusion when they hit one month, then three, then six, then a year, etc., as well as plenty of mean-spirited jokes about Peter being a gold-digger, having blackmail material on Tony, or countdowns to when he's getting dumped; gross entertainment press stuff

- it's tough academically/professionally for Peter, because people on the outside assume that Tony paid for his degree, and then that he's just swanning around doing nothing in his eventual position at SI because he's sleeping with the boss instead of actually having the chops to be in SI R&D

(- he does have former classmates/teachers/coworkers at SI willing to vouch for him actually being a bona fide genius on his own merits, but there are always also jerks willing to sell the opposite story to tabloids, so, y'know,)

- outside of the press, this manifests as Peter getting ignored at times at conferences/expos etc. when he's presenting his research, with people directing questions to his co-panelists even when Peter's the lead researcher/developer-- well past the point that it should be obvious Peter genuinely knows his stuff, Tony still has to go out of his way to redirect questions to Peter during presentations like, "Mr. Parker was lead on the biochem side of this project so he'll have to answer that question; Pete?"

- Tony and Peter mostly don't respond to it directly-- they discussed/understood when they decided to stop actively hiding the relationship that acknowledging the public's reaction would only fuel it, and even with going public they try to keep Peter as little of a public figure as possible while he's still in grad school. He doesn't go with Tony to red carpet events, and Tony ignores the jabs/invasive questions that he gets in public and only responds to the ones that people have to balls to say to his face in actual conversation

- and then:

- Peter's graduated, he's been working at SI for a few years and started going with Tony to public events now that (despite the occasional continued jabs) their relationship's old news. Tony's giving a speech at something big, something televised, and Peter's sitting onstage in the background with the other invited speakers and their partners, listening and smiling

- and then suddenly in the background, Peter sits up straight, attention pulled away from Tony to something off-screen, and in a flash he leaps up from his chair and jumps for Tony--

- and then Tony is on the floor of the stage, being cradled protectively in Spider-man's arms on national television, a scorch mark on the stage where Tony was standing milliseconds before because blah blah a villain is attacking

- Tony's mic is still live, so in the clips that make it to Youtube and also the actual news, underneath all the screaming he can be clearly heard when he blinks up at Peter for a second and then says, "Nice save, babe."

- the mic doesn't pick up Peter's response, but it makes Tony smile before he activates his suit and they team up to take down the bad guy.

- the public collectively loses its shit, and also goes, ohhhhh, okay

- when Peter finally has his official press conference to formally confirm his identity, he and Tony take great delight in only inviting journalists from publications that never called Peter a gold-digger when they first went public 💖

(- and Tony fuckin' thrives on finally getting to actually unleash years of repressed zingers directed at the folks who did.)

[ursafootprints]

Another idea that popped into my head but that I aaaabsolutely do not have the conviction to turn into an actual fic so I'm just kind of dumping, uh, 3k of some thoughts here:

Starker Pacific Rim AU!

Tony is a retired Jaeger pilot who has lost past copilots to either death or injury; his final mission prior to retiring involved his copilot Rhodey suffering a spinal cord injury that impacted his ability to walk and Tony getting a chest injury that necessitates the placement of an arc reactor like in canon 

 Blah blah handwavey science bullshit, Tony is forced to retire because the arc reactor isn't compatible with the Jaeger technology somehow so he can't pilot any longer (and is kind of Over It from the trauma of outliving multiple copilots regardless)

He gets out of the Jaeger program entirely and starts working on the Kaiju problem from other angles-- other coastal defense systems, funding research into cures for Kaiju Blue toxicity, maybe some less-than-legal research into the Kaiju themselves to see if there's a biological weakness to exploit, but like in PacRim canon it's clear that humanity is losing the war nonetheless

And then Fury comes to recruit him back to Jaeger program, and Tony's like, you know I can't pilot anymore, what are you talking about. And Fury tells him that one of his engineers managed to modify Tony's old Jaeger to be compatible with arc reactor technology.

Tony's like, lol it's cute that you think I'm heading back to PPDC HQ because some gearhead has a theory about Jaeger-arc reactor integration, but no. And Fury's like, this kid built his own arc reactor; we've tested it; it works.

And Tony's still outwardly resistant to going at all (and genuinely ambivalent about ultimately returning to piloting), but Fury knows he's got 'im because of course Tony has to see how someone made that work.

So Tony goes back to the Shatterdome with him, and Fury introduces him to the engineer that cracked it: 23-year-old Peter Parker.

Peter's a little starstruck, and Tony's still skeptical that whatever tests and theoretical models Peter's come up with will adequately account for an arc reactor that's powering a human given that, y'know, Tony has the only one of those in the world. 

 So it starts out pretty awkward, but as Peter gets into explaining his research his nerves fade away and as soon as he's just being himself without that layer of jitters in the way, he and Tony immediately connect on both a scientific and personal level.

Over the course of like, a day of Peter walking Tony through first his research and then his efforts to restore and modify Tony's Jaeger (which Tony keeps a lid on but does get emotional about, since he designed his and Rhodey's Jaeger himself and it was totally wrecked last he saw it), and then finally the actual testing/demonstration of the Jaeger successfully working with Peter's arc reactor model, Tony comes to the conclusions that 1) wow, this kid is a genius, and 2) wow, this kid is perfect.

Fury leaves them alone to their science talk for most of the day, but does show up for the final demo so he can get Tony's thoughts on whether he's willing to return. Tony's like: yeah, but on one condition.

He points to Peter, and says, he's my copilot.

Fury actually is not… not on board, though he's skeptical because Peter's not a cadet, but Peter is like lskjdflsdkjf u-uhhhh no I mean I'm not a pilot I would only hold you back! And Tony's like, c'mon, your insight into what's necessary for Jaeger operations on the part of the pilot is way too good to only be theoretical, I know you've been in the simulator. what's your score.

Peter tries to brush it off but Fury's like, answer the damn question Parker, so he squeaks out his simulator score and it's Good.

Tony fucking grins and is like, okay great, when do we start drift tests? But Peter is still trying to desperately pump the brakes because

He's had a huge fucking crush on Genius Celebrity Hero-Pilot Philanthropist Tony Stark since he was like six years old and if he and Tony drift then Tony's going to know and then there's no way they could pilot together because it would be so fucking awkward and Tony would lose all respect for him and you have to trust your copilot and there would be nothing more humiliating than getting hand-picked by Tony Stark to be his copilot and then being rejected after the first drift compatibility trial--

And Tony sees Peter's anxiety and his enthusiasm immediately drains away because he kind of wakes up to, shit, he just volunteered this kid to be a soldier and of course Peter's not up for that, what was he thinking, and he's already lost so many people so why would he try to drag someone this good into the line of fire like that, he let himself say something so selfish just because he can feel that their drift compatibility is off the charts (but also, also, what's going to ultimately happen to Peter anyway, if the Kaiju can't be stopped--)

And Fury sees that he's like, losing both of them, so he's just like. Okay so we're going to do standard copilot compatibility group trials between Stark and the cadets. Parker you're going to participate in the group trials. Everyone gets to sleep on it, everyone gets a chance to try things out, no one's getting married so chill the fuck out.

Tony and Peter both unhappily agree to that plan, Fury leaves them alone, and Tony's like. "Sorry about that, kid. I shouldn't have volunteered you like that. Back in my day, anyone would have jumped at the chance to be a Jaeger pilot, but…" And he gestures to his arc reactor. "I guess I should have known that these days that shine's pretty well worn off."

And Peter rushes to reassure him that no, he still thinks being a pilot is the bravest thing in the world, and he wants to do whatever he can for the resistance, but-- he just doesn't see how he could possibly be a good fit for Tony Stark, and he's worried that he would only hold Tony back.

Tony's like, "You've got to give yourself more credit, kid. You're the one that made it possible for me to even get back in a Jaeger in the first place." And while Peter's still processing that, totally melting, Tony shrugs and says, "I know you've got better things to do than get yourself killed in one of those things."

But he can't keep himself from adding, "But if you end up sticking out the trials… With both of us in there, I think the Kaiju wouldn't know what hit 'em."

And Peter's absolutely gone for him, so even though he still thinks it's a terrible idea, he tells Tony that he'll see him at the copilot trials the next day, and they part ways.

In the meantime, Tony meets up with Rhodey for dinner, who never left the PPDC and transitioned to a LOCCENT Officer position (Tendo Choi's role in PacRim, ftr) after having to retire from piloting. They've kept in close touch, but mostly through videocalls etc. since it's hard for Rhodey to get off-base and Tony was avoiding visiting.

They catch up, have some drinks, and Rhodey finally asks Tony how he actually feels about getting back in a Jaeger. Tony-- who figures that Rhodey already knows, really; they were in each other's heads on a regular basis for years-- admits that he honestly doesn't know if he can do it, and when he thinks about being put in a position where he might have to outlive or watch a partner be badly injured again…

He shrugs and says "I'd do anything to keep that from happening. No matter what," knowing Rhodey will know what he means.

Rhodey scolds him for it gently, all, hey you know you can't get in there with someone thinking like that or neither of you is going to come back, and Tony says, yeah, I know.

And Rhodey says, you know we can win this, and if we do, there is still gonna be life after the war. there's a reason to come back. before you get in there you need to have a reason to come back. And Tony says, yeah, I know.

And then, the next day, copilot trials!

aka ~sexy sparring day~

Peter's not a cadet, but he has lived in/near different Shatterdomes basically his whole life because his parents were also Jaeger engineers, so even once he was living on-shore with his aunt and uncle he was always running around with aspiring cadets, rough-housing and sparring and trying to keep up, and he does work out in the gym and combat room when he's not on-shift. So while he's not 100% refined the way the actual cadets are…

............I was going to insert some gifs here from Mako and Raleigh’s erotic sparring scene, partic. the part where she has him pinned with his leg to her side and he just flops to the ground, defeated and starry-eyed, but I couldn’t fucking find one that Tumblr would let me upload/credit so we’re just going to have to use our imaginations here,

Tony tries not to push it. He just lets Peter pull him up and claps him on the shoulder and smiles, because he knows Peter felt the connection too; knows that Peter can see he was by far the best match out of all the trials, but he doesn't want to do anything to talk Peter into it if he's genuinely not prepared to pilot.

Meanwhile, with time to sleep on it, Peter is coming around to the idea-- he does want to do whatever he can to protect people, but he's always assumed that the best he could do was built better Jaegers, and the more he gets to know Tony the more and more unlikely it seems that Tony wouldn't be able to gracefully handle the idea of a fan with a crush. (And-- the more he gets to know Tony, the more likely it seems that maybe, through partnering up, they could actually become friends.)

Fury dismisses everyone from the combat room with news that the top candidates will be contacted after he and Tony have time to review the results. Before he leaves, Peter kind of blurts out to Tony to ask if he can see him after he's done talking to Fury, so they can talk about, y'know, piloting, and what that might look like, and--

Tony tells him of course, and everyone leaves the room, and Tony to Fury is like. Okay so obviously the top candidate is Peter but I'm not going to force him to pilot if he doesn't actually want to. But I think he's coming around. And Fury's like, yeah fucking obviously literally anyone could see that, who are your second and third place, and Tony unenthusiastically gives him some other names, and then goes off to find Peter.

They talk! Peter asks him what piloting/drifting is like for real, and Tony tells him. Peter gently pushes back on the idea that Tony's ready to do that with him, given that he's a total stranger, and Tony points out that so is everyone else in the pilot pool and that he and Peter at least already know that they get along, and Tony is already putting a lot of trust in Peter in regards to maintaining/modifying his Jaeger.

As they talk, Peter does finally admit that he is a little afraid that Tony will see something in the drift that will change his opinion about Peter (leaving it vague as a kind of formless anxiety rather than actually implying that there is a Specific Thing he's concerned about, both because duh and because the more he kind of genuinely falls for Tony, the less it is about worrying about romantic rejection and the more it is about a general personal rejection in regards to like, maybe Peter's just not good enough to be Tony's partner/copilot, etc.)

Tony empathizes about how drifting really is a very intimate/vulnerable thing to do, and he understands if that's not something Peter wants to do, and he admits that he also has a lot of his own concerns about being Seen in his entirety after having so long for his professional/media reputation as the Super Cool Effortlessly Funny Genius War Hero to take hold in people's minds.

But, he says. Everyone is always so concerned about people seeing what they think are their bad parts that they don't think about what it means that their partner is getting to see all of them, meaning that their partner knows why they act or think that way and why they have those habits. They understand. And it's kind of impossible to ever hate someone, to not care about someone, that you understand inside and out.

He makes some jokes, too, about how if Peter is concerned about drifting with Tony he can just ask Rhodey, and that would definitely be an object lesson in how it's impossible to hate someone you drift with because Tony's an obnoxious fuck and Rhodey still puts up with him.

But Peter can read the subtext there, that what Tony actually means is "I failed Rhodey and got him hurt and he somehow doesn't hate me anyway," and he absolutely aches that Tony would think of himself like that.

So he tells Tony that he can tell Fury that Peter's in. If Tony still thinks they would be a good team.

And Tony's thrilled, but also terrified, because the more attached he gets to Peter the more afraid he is of Peter getting hurt.

They tell Fury and make it official and are set up for like, pre-drift test briefing which is basically a thing where they talk through the stuff that's most likely to knock them out of the drift, so no one is taken badly by surprise and ideally they can be mentally prepared for it before they go in.

They both talk about losing their parents to Kaiju attacks, and Peter also talks about Uncle Ben. (I refuse to accept MCU killing off Aunt May so NWH can suck my dick.) Tony struggles through describing losing his first copilot (Steve? Yinsen? Incredibly dysfunctional copiloting relationship with Howard? Up to you I'm not actually writing this fic!) and the mission that resulted in his and Rhodey's injuries/retirements.

They bond over their mutual responsibility/guilt/savior complexes, and also just kind of lean into the ridiculousness of this Extreme Emotional Intimacy exercise by adding their own much more fun and low-stakes questions amongst the official and incredibly bummertastic Pre-Drift Interview script. So Tony asks Peter what he would be doing if there wasn't a war, or what he thinks he'll want to pivot to after, and Peter starts off describing career stuff-- working with groups that help people displaced from coastal cities, family reunification projects, turning his engineering experience with Jaegers towards things like prosthetics and neural-control accessibility devices, etc.--

And now Tony's the one that's all starry-eyed but he still cuts in to be like, okay great, that's the story for Peter Parker, Scientist, but like. It's your day off and the breach is closed and no one's had to worry about Kaiju for like, five years. What are you doing.

And, living in this world where the ocean has become something so much more scary over the last several decades, instead of being this source of wonder and exploratory and fun-- Peter says, I'd be at the beach.

And Tony laughs (kind of sadly) and shares some stories of his family's favorite beach spots growing up, and it's kind of a bittersweet-ly hopeful thing as the conversation winds down.

And then it's time for the actual drift test! Tony asks Peter, semi-jokingly if he has any last thoughts/secrets that he wants to share before they go in, and Peter's like, y'know, I think everything left is something that we could talk about in the drift. 

 The test starts! Tony's actually the one most shaken by it/coming the closest to getting knocked out of the drift due to his specifically-drift-related traumas, but he prepped for it and also, from Peter there's just such this sense of comfort and unshakeable faith and empathy and, and something else, what is that actually--

And Peter doesn't recoil or try to fight it as his memories of Tony start to surface in the drift. Watching Tony on TV as a kid, playing Jaeger Pilot with friends as a kid and always pretending that it was Tony's Jaeger he was piloting, growing even more interested and devoted to science as he got older with every news story about Tony's engineering breakthroughs in the Jaeger program as well as his successful missions, having some very private moments with magazines Tony was featured in coughcough, and then getting to actually meet Tony and within a handful of days sinking from a starstruck celebrity crush into something real, growing more and more with every joke and conversation, actively growing more and more with every moment he spends in Tony's head--

And Peter's still embarrassed, yeah. But he trusts Tony, now, and he's able to project his own feelings along their connection of hey, it's okay if you don't feel like this towards me, I've known of you so much longer than you've known me, we don't have to be partners like that to be partners and I still trust you and I can handle it gracefully because what we already have is so good--

And Tony is shocked, yeah, but it's not bad, and recognizing those feelings in Peter and then being able to feel his own feelings around him, feel Peter feeling his feelings, lets him examine them in a different way, that he wasn't really bothering to do before, and:

A new memory in the drift, of Rhodey telling Tony that there is a life still out there after the war; that he needs to have a reason to come back from the next mission. And a responding thought-- not a memory, but a thought, a fantasy-- an imagined picture of Tony and Peter, in civilian clothes, walking hand-in-hand down sandy shores.

CALIBRATION COMPLETE.

 …And then the rest of PacRim happens and they save the world with the power of their connection to each other and live happily ever after the end

Thanks for reading!

[ursafootprints]

PROGRESS TRACKER

9/15: Perpetual Motion chapter 4, posted!

8/24: wicked love threequel progress, 2956 words

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TAGS OF (POTENTIAL) INTEREST

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