Peter and Bucky sprinted down the main hallway of Midtown High. They startled a group of theater kids who were probably making their way to an early practice. The teenagers pressed themselves against the walls, eyes filling with fear and shock as they watched their fellow classmate, Peter Parker, race the Winter Soldier down their school hallway.
Rumors would start to spread as soon as Peter left the building. Maybe even before. Since these were theater kids, who tended to be a tad bit dramatic, they would probably be brushed off and laughed at. I mean, who would believe that Peter Parker, the least athletic kid in the whole school (HA!), would be able to keep up with the Winter Soldier?
When Peter's class got out, though. That's another story. When they start talking, people will believe it. The identity of Stark Jr? Who's head wouldn't turn at that. Peter's life was about to take a big dive. A new change was coming, and he didn't know if it was good or bad. Probably bad.
Peter shook his head to rid the thoughts circling around in his mind. He couldn't think about all of this right now. Mind on the mission, Stark! There's a little girl who needs your help.
Peter veered off to the right, entering one of the less used locker rooms. This one happened to have a door leading out into an alleyway. Perfect for changing into his Iron Spider suit. He pushed open the chipped blue doors stationed on the back wall. Rays of sunlight hit his face.
Peter glanced over at Bucky, who was stretching out his muscles preparing for another sprint across the city. At least Stark Towers was closer than the supermarket he was at before. Of course, he already had to run across half of New York, so maybe that point didn't really matter.
Peter pressed a hidden button on one of his black leather bracelets, causing the bands to expand into his web-shooters on both wrists. A holographic screen materialized, and he tapped one of the options given. The nanotech hidden in the leather flowed out, moving up Peter's arms. Red, blue, and gold armor connected over Peter's entire body forming the Iron Spider suit. He preferred the spandex suit, but the Iron Spider was more suitable for a quick change like this.
Without a word, Peter and Bucky took off toward Stark Towers. Peter swung between buildings while Bucky sprinted on the streets below. He skillfully dodged and occasionally jumped over obstacles in his way. They made it to their destination in less than three minutes.
The two met in a nearby alleyway so Peter could retract his suit back into the leather bracelets. Walking into the fight as Spider-Man would attract too much attention. Acting as a civilian would be much more effective. Even if he had to use unknown Stark Tech and reveal himself as Stark Jr. Better to do it on his own terms instead of letting the rumors leak out of his school.
Bucky curiously looked him up and down. "How will you fight?" He asked.
Peter smirked and pressed the button on the leather again. This time he selected a different option on the hologram. A replica of Iron Man's repulsors formed around his hand. "With this," he casually replied. He tapped the button again, and the repulsor retracted back into the leather bracelet. "I also have a knife in my backpack."
A ghost of a smile formed on Bucky's lips. "I've taught you well."
Peter reached behind him and unzipped a side pocket on his backpack. He pulled out a pair of glasses and slid them on. A blue light moved down the glass pane showing him they were active. "In case we get separated, you go help my dad. I'm going to go rescue a kid on the 39th floor." Bucky nodded his head in confirmation. "Let's go then."
Peter and Bucky ran out of the alley, straight for the large group of people standing in front of Stark Towers. When the crowd saw Bucky, they jumped out of the way and parted immediately. That tends to happen when you see the Winter Soldier running straight towards you.
Peter stuck to Bucky's back like glue so he wouldn't get lost in the crowd moving back together behind them. A few people shot Peter questioning looks, but he chose to ignore them, opting to focus on the mission at hand.
The two arrived at the barricade the police had set up. Officers were scattered around it, making sure civilians didn't try to dart past and enter the building. News stations were filming a couple of feet past the barricade. Probably so they had a clear view of Stark Towers and didn't have to fight the crowd.
Bucky jumped the fence and took off across the wide expanse of concrete without hesitation. When Peter attempted to follow, a police officer wrapped an arm around his stomach and pulled him back behind the metal fence. "I can't let you go in there, kid," he instructed. "It's too dangerous."
Of course, they would let Bucky through. He's considered a superhero now. Peter honestly didn't think they would let him through. Him being dressed as a civilian and all. It was worth a shot, though. Beats having to immediately go with plan B.
Bucky got halfway between the barricade and Stark Towers when he noticed that Peter was no longer behind him. He turned around and stared at Peter. His steel-blue eyes said it all, 'Why are you still behind the fence?'
Peter struggled against the arms holding him back until the Police Officer moved one of his hands to Peter's shoulder.
Peter leaned on the metal fence and yelled, "It's okay Bucky. Just go without me." Bucky gave him a stiff nod and turned back around. He was inside the building in seconds.
Peter tilted his head, moving his eyes to focus on the cop holding him back. He shook the hand off his shoulder and turned around. The cop straightened up and crossed his arms.
Peter attempted a halfhearted argument, "Sir, my dad's in there. Will you please let me through?"
The officer shook his head. "I'm sorry, kid, but I can't let any civilians cross the barricade."
Peter sighed and started walking around the police officer, back toward the crowd eagerly watching the exchange. "Okay then," he shrugged.
Peter only made it a few feet before he stopped and turned back around. The police officer was now leaning against the metal fence, eyeing him. He obviously thought Peter was about to cause trouble, and he was right.
Peter's eyes moved to the ground, and he mumbled under his breath, "FRIDAY, activate FTN sneakers." The bottom of his shoes glowed a faint blue, and he started hovering over the asphalt.
Peter looked back up to see that the police officer's eyes had widened quite a bit. He was now standing straight up and had a hand placed over his radio. If Peter gave him enough time, he would probably call in backup.
Peter took a running stance and sprinted across the air toward the barricade. The Police Officer stood his ground, which was fine by Peter. He jumped up a few feet from the fence—he most certainly did not use his powers—and hovered over the officer's head.
By now, Peter had attracted the attention of most of the crowd. Who wouldn't notice a kid hovering above them? Wonder and shock filled their eyes.
Peter smirked and gave the crowd a two-fingered salute. "Adios Amigos," he yelled down. The bottom of his shoes glowed brighter, and he rose higher and higher into the sky. FRIDAY controlled the steering—because a way to control the direction the sneakers went had yet to be decided—and brought him to a window on the 39th floor. Thankfully, she had already opened it, so he didn't smack into it like a bird. That would've been embarrassing.
As soon as Peter was through the window, his shoes stopped glowing blue. He landed silently on the balls of his feet and got into a fighting stance. His eyes darted across the room, scanning every square inch. Nothing was out of place. Peter let his posture relax, but he didn't dare let his guard down. FRIDAY's scanners weren't showing any other heat signatures other than him and the little girl on this floor, but she's been hacked before, which means she can be hacked again. It's better to be safe than sorry.
Peter slowly exited the room FRIDAY deposited him in. His sneakers made quiet shuffles on the wooden floor. That would definitely need to be fixed. He followed the map FRIDAY had displayed on the screen of his glasses. The path would lead him directly to the little girl.
Peter listened hard for any sounds of other people as he crept down the hallway, but it was silent. All he could hear was the air blowing out of the vents and small sniffles coming from farther down the hallway. Peter's steps faltered. Wait, sniffles? That means someone is probably crying down there, Peter thought to himself. He picked up his pace and headed straight for the door the soft noises were coming from.
Peter found himself standing in front of a closet, if he remembered correctly. This specific one held towels to clean up messes made from the labs on this floor. He tried to push down on the handle, but it didn't budge, so instead, he chose to softly knock on the wooden frame. The quiet sniffling abruptly stopped at the sound.
"Who's there," The little girl timidly called out.
"I'm here to help you," Peter gently answered. "Could you open the door, please?" He heard shuffling and the squeak of wooden floorboards and assumed the girl had moved. "My mom told me not to open the door for anyone," she replied.
Peter nodded his head and lowered himself to the floor. He crossed his legs and faced the door. "Your mom's a smart woman, and you're smart to listen to her. You don't have to open the door unless you want to." Peter patiently waited a few feet from the door. If the girl didn't want to come out, he would wait here and protect her in case one of the intruders decided to wander up a few floors.
A few minutes passed by before the little girl spoke up again. "Are you still there?" she asked.
"Yes."
Peter heard the floor squeak again as the little girl scooted closer to the door. "Do you know where my mom went?"
Peter opened his mouth to reply but quickly snapped it shut. He bit his lip. Should he tell her the truth or try to sugar-coat it? He could already tell that this girl was intelligent just by the few words they exchanged. When he was her age, he would've wanted the truth.
Decision made, Peter opened his mouth again. "Some bad men broke into the building. They brought your mom into a room downstairs with all the other workers."
"Oh."
A few more minutes passed. By now, Peter could hear distant bangs from the fight downstairs. The little girl spoke once more, "What's your name?"
"Peter—" Peter hesitated a moment. Should he tell this girl the truth? His secret would probably be all over the news by next week, maybe sooner. There's no way a bunch of Highschool kids are going to keep silent. The little girl also might come out if he told her the truth. "—Peter Stark."
The little girl gasped. Peter noticed the wooden door move as she probably pushed her body against it. "You're the boy everyone's been talking about for the past few months!"
"Yes," Peter laughed. He leaned forward. "What's your name?"
"Emma."
Peter smiled at the quiet answer. He finally had a name. Now he didn't have to keep calling her little girl in his head.
Emma spoke up again. "If you're really Tony Stark's son, couldn't you of just asked the lady in the ceiling to open the door for you?"
"I could have."
"Then why didn't you?"
"I didn't want to scare you and force you out." Peter thought for a moment. "I can ask her now, though. If you want me to. It'll prove to you that I'm really who I say I am."
Emma didn't answer right away. Peter assumed she was thinking through the question. "You can," she eventually said.
Peter smiled at the reply and tilted his head toward the ceiling. FRIDAY may not actually be up there, but it felt weird just speaking out into the hallway. "FRIDAY, can you unlock the door, please?"
FRIDAY's voice echoed out of a speaker in the hall. "Yes, Peter." The door clicked. Peter climbed to his feet and reached forward, pushing the handle down. The wood slowly swung open, revealing a little girl with braided blonde hair and bright green eyes. She stared up at Peter in wonder.
Peter smiled fondly and offered Emma his hand—she took it without any hesitation. He started leading her down the hall toward the elevators. "You don't mind if we take a small detour before I take you outside, do you?"
Emma shook her head no. Peter smiled and gently dragged her over to a blank wall. Well, what appeared to be a blank wall. He placed his hand over a smoother section, and the square lit up blue. The blue light traveled down his hand, scanning it. When it finished, the blue light turned green. Activating two sections of the blank wall off to the right. They slid open to reveal a small elevator.
Peter felt Emma's grip tighten, and he looked down to see a comically shocked expression on her face. Her mouth hung wide open, and her eyes were the size of saucers. Peter laughed, breaking her out of her stupor. She looked up at him. He could practically see the questions zooming around in her head, so he decided to answer what was probably the most prominent one. "It's a secret elevator. Every floor has one. The bad guys might be watching the other elevators, so I decided to use this one."
Peter lightly tugged on the girl's arm, leading her into the elevator. The look of wonder never left her eyes. He didn't blame her. Riding in a secret elevator was probably a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The doors of the secret elevator slid shut, closing the two kids in the safety of the small room. Peter realized he should probably tell FRIDAY where to bring them. "FRIDAY, take us to the penthouse." He felt the elevator start to rise underneath his feet.
Emma made a noise of surprise, causing Peter to look back down at her. He didn't think it was possible, but her eyes were even wider than before. She tilted her head back and looked up at him. "I get to see the penthouse?" Emma faintly asked.
Peter nodded his head. "I need to grab a few things before we leave." He reached down and poked her nose, causing her to giggle. "They'll help me protect you from the bad guys."
When the elevator doors finally opened up on the penthouse floor, Peter took off towards his room. He made sure Emma was behind him first, though. She was. Imagine losing the kid you came to save.
Every few seconds, Peter would hear Emma gasp at something cool she saw. Like Clint's extra bow just sitting there on the dining room table—Peter was pretty sure Pepper told him to put that away this morning—or Steve's art corner off to the right.
Peter smiled fondly at her reactions. He was used to all of this stuff. Normally you could find Steve's shield leaning against the couch or a few extra knives Bucky left laying around. It was nice seeing someone else's perspective, especially a little girl's.
Peter led Emma down a hallway and swiftly opened the door to his room. He made a beeline for his combat boots sitting in the corner. If he had to fight some mighty supervillain today, he was doing it in his favorite shoes. Who cares if somebody recognized them. They were all probably about to find out who he really was anyway.
Peter slid his backpack off and dropped it on the floor. Then he yanked off the FTN sneakers and stuffed them inside. He quickly looked up to check on Emma and saw her standing in front of his wall of Legos, mesmerized.
"Cool, right?" Peter asked as he laced up his boots. Emma nodded her head and turned to face Peter. When she noticed the wall behind him, her eyes widened again. Peter smiled. "That's my wall dedicated to Iron Man. Everyone finds it funny, seeing as he's my dad, but I'm actually pretty proud of it."
Emma walked over to the wall and gently placed her hand on one of the posters. "Iron Man's my favorite Avenger," She whispered.
"Mine too. Just don't tell him that. We don't want his head getting any bigger than it already is." Emma giggled at the comment and continued studying the wall.
Peter finished lacing up his boots and started moving things around on his floor. He really needed to clean this place up. His favorite knife wasn't anywhere. He stood up and scanned the rest of the room. A glint of silver on his dresser caught his attention. Peter moved aside the papers and picked up the hidden knife. Bucky gave him this one right after he deemed him good enough to hold a knife without killing himself. It's always been his favorite.
Peter slipped the knife into one of his boots and turned back to Emma, who was still staring up at his Iron Man wall in amazement. "Are you ready to go?" he asked.
Emma turned to him and nodded her head. Peter reached out his hand, and she latched onto it. Before the two left, Peter made sure to grab his backpack off of the floor. He shrugged it back onto his back and left the room.
Peter led Emma back into the main room and toward the secret elevator. This time FRIDAY would take them down to the private entrance very few people knew about. From there, they would sneak around the building and join the crowd of civilians standing in front of Stark Towers. Nothing would hinder their escape. Hopefully.