The next morning Peter woke to a strange wight on his head along with sharp taps on his forehead.
As Peter slowly opened his eyes, he squinted at very large curious eyes staring down at him.
"Leia?" He mumbled as his vision slowly focused. With the direction his window faced the newly rising sun was at the perfect position to shin directly in his eyes.
He slowly sat up and the small owl fluttered off Peter's head landing on the nearby bedpost, it was only then that he realized the owl had a letter in her beak. With his head still groggy from the sleep he glanced over at the balcony door noticing it was closed, he sat there confused, wondering how she managed to get back in. His thoughts were interrupted by the owl jumping onto his knee and shoving the letter at him.
"Ok, ok," he muttered as he took the letter that was now laying in his lap. After picking it up Leia seemed satisfied, she flew over to her open cage then perched on the platform inside as she nibbled at the food in her feeding bowl.
Peter took in a long breath as he stretched before opening the letter, well, looking at it now it was more of a note.
Hey, Pete. Had to leave early and didn't want to wake you. Saw your owl on the balcony and decided to let it in.
Now I'm going to assume it's also some kind of wizard thing to use owls to send messages or is that just a weird teenage thing? Either way, I'm also assuming magic's involved because there's no way your owl should have known where you where when we were at the movies last week. So humor me and test my theory, send me a letter this morning. I want to see if your owl can find me.
-T
"It sounds like he's playing hide and seek" Peter said with a dry laugh. He looked up at Leia who hooted in agreement. "What do you say? Accept the challenge?"
The small owl puffed out her chest with a prideful look as she hooted.
"I'll take that as a yes," Peter grinned as he crawled out of bed. He walked over to the desk near the wall and ripped off a paper from the hotel provided notepad and started to write.
Tony,
Yes, magic is involved. From what I know owls have a natural affinity to magic and after being properly trained can deliver a letter to anyone without even an address. Though, MJ told me there are some spells that can keep an owl from finding you but I wouldn't know what they are.
Anyways, if you're in a government meeting in some high level security area then she'll still find you. I doubt no-maj security can stop an owl from finding anyone.
-Peter
Peter folded the paper up and put it in an envelope he found in the desk. He wrote Tony's name on the front and handed it to Leia who was already waiting by the balcony door.
"Don't cause to much trouble. I don't want to hear you swooping into a room full of no-majs and freaking them out."
Leia rolled her eyes, but the motion included the movement of her whole head, as if to say 'she was a professional post owl and knew exactly what she was doing,' But after Peter opened the balcony door, the sly look she gave him before flying off told him 'but no harm having a little fun on the job.'
Peter just sighed and shook his head with a small smile.
He couldn't stop the yawn from escaping as he closed the door and turned to face his room. He walking over to the end of his bed where a fancy fabric covered bench sat, with his bags settled on top. He dug through his suitcase finding the clothes he was going to wear for the day then made his way into the large bathroom that was between Tony and his room. He still couldn't get over the fact the shower had a waterfall mode. It was hard to believe he was in a hotel, it felt more like a luxury resort.
******
"For the next thing on the agenda we're going to be discussing the possible whereabouts of fugitive leader Steve Rogers. There are reported sightings of him across Europe and Africa," Thaddeus Ross said to the UN council that set before him.
Tony sat somewhat in the middle of the room at a long table with a few other officials surrounding him, it vaguely reminded him of the trials he had to go through when the US government was demanding his Iron Man suit, except with notability less press coverage. He halfway zoned out at the mention of Steve's name.
"Mr. Stark," Ross said with an annoyed tone.
"Yes, dear?" Tony said with a sly grin. It was obvious he was getting on everyone's nerves but that's what they get for indirectly causing Peter to stress out.
"A little bit of professionalism would be appreciated," Ross sighed.
"Look, I've told you once and I'll tell you again. There's nothing I can do about the rouge Cap and friends, they know how to hide their tracks especially from me. And if they're going old school then there wouldn't be a digital trail to follow anyways. I'm the tech guy, not a blood hound," Tony waved a had at his phone as if to emphasize the point.
"We still want to see you making an effort, because right now it looks like your just waiting our time."
"Oh, your time? Just because I passed on my CEO title doesn't mean I don't have a company to run, not to mention a number of other very important things I'd rather be doing," Tony couldn't help the sass that was seeping into his tone.
"And what-" Ross was interrupted by a small but noticeable tapping coming from the window. "What is that?" He said redirecting everyone's attention to the window.
Tony immediately jumped up and walked over to the small window positioned at the far corner of the room. "That would be fore me!"
He pulled the curtains back and revealed a small owl. Confused whispers broke out through the room.
"Does this window even open?" Tony asked no one in particular, after a moment he finally managed to open the window. I was stiff since the thing probably hadn't been touched in decades.
"Mr. Stark!" Ross protested, but was just as perplexed by the owl as everyone else in the room. They all watched as Tony took the letter from the bird's beak and read over it.
Tony put the letter in his pocket with a smirk then saying something to the owl before it flew off, he didn't bother closing the window. He turned on his heel and walked back to his seat. "Right where were we?" He asked, as if receiving a letter from an owl was completely normal.
******
"Peter, I'm back," Tony called as he closed the door of their room.
Peter was laying across the couch on his stomach as he read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them again.
"Sorry the meeting ran late," Tony sighed as he fell into the armchair next to the couch. He pulled out his phone and started scanning through the notifications he received.
"It's fine," Peter said before glancing at his phone. "We still have awhile before we need to go," he returned his gaze back to his book. Peter didn't necessarily need to read it but he always found the different magical animals very interesting. Especially the dragons, those things were just awesome. He hopped someday he could see one in person.
"Right," Tony said as he lowered his phone. "Meeting the wizard in the tavern. God, I still can't get over how that sounds," he said with a small laugh.
"I'm sure you'll get used to it," Peter looked back up at Tony for a moment as he used his spidey sense to untangle the feelings the man had. "You're not as skeptical," Peter finally said.
Tony put his phone down and looked over at Peter. "Yeah, but I still have some doubts. I believe you Pete, I really do. It's just... an entire wizarding community?" He lightly started scratching his chin in thought. "How did they manage to hide for so long?"
"Well, a lot of it has to do with charmed locations and hidden areas that only wizards now how to get to, but there's also this spell that's used to erased memories of no-majs that accidentally see anything," Peter was sitting up now as he leaned against the armrest.
Tony just looked at him wide eyed, "what? That's kinda terrifying. What's stopping some wizard from erasing my memory, how would I even know if something liked that happened?"
Peter didn't really have answers for those questions. For a wizard it would be easy to counter a spell like that. Despite it being a more advanced spell it was moderately simple and easy to block, but how would a no-maj defend against it? Considering memory spells were often used against no-majs the answer was they didn't.
"Um, I don't know," Peter could sense a strong nervousness coming from Tony and, in tern, it was making Peter nervous. Peter then quickly got up "I'll be right back," he said before tossing his book onto the coffee table and running off to his room.
Tony couldn't help but look down at the discarded book, his curiosity urged him to look at it.
When Peter returned with another text book in hand he saw Tony reading Fantastic Beasts . "Shit, the Loch Ness Monster is real?" He said the moment Peter returned. "I mean, the stuff in this book is real right?" Tony asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, it's actually one of my text books for school," Peter said sitting down on the couch again before opening the charms book he grabbed from his room.
"Is that one of your textbooks to?" He asked.
"Yeah, it was from my third year charms class. It doesn't have many advanced spells but it has an overview of different types. Maybe it will have information on memory spells," Peter started flipping through the index and soon found what he was looking for. He read over the page a few times while Tony seemed to go back to reading over Fantastic Beasts.
"Of course unicorns exist," Tony mumbled with a laugh.
Peter finally spoke up, "ok, so, it says a lot of memory charms take practice and training to master. They are mostly used by government official to help maintain Statute of Secrecy."
"Statute of Secrecy?" Tony asked raising an eyebrow.
"It like this international law that makes everyone keep the wizarding world a secret from no-majs. Some places are a little more lax than others but they all have the same rule."
"So it's not just certain governments, it's an entire world full of wizards that hide from everyone else?" Tony asked in disbelief.
"Well... yeah" Peter said with a shrug. There wasn't much to say on the subject, that's just how it was, but for good reason if his memory of first year magical history was correct.
"Why?"
"Because we were hunted, outcasts. There were witch-hunters and burnings. Witches and wizards were forced into chains and cells only to be executed for possessing magic..." Peter trailed off. There was so much more to the story, one of the darkest times in wizarding history was just before the Statute of Secrecy was put in place. Just the thought of it made Peter sympathize with his ancestors.
Tony could feel the shift in the conversations, but he couldn't stop his next question. "How long has this law been in place?"
"Since the late 1600s I think? I don't remember the exact date, I learned this stuff when I was twelve," Peter said scratching the back of his head.
"That's 400 years ago, has no one ever thought to try reaching out?"
"No, but every time magic has been accidentally exposed and not covered up fast enough it leads to a lot of people getting hurt. The Salem witch trials for example, there were even Second Salemers in... the 1920s? Yeah," Peter nodded to himself. "I only know that because we went over it before school was out, some of that stuff where the wizarding community and no-maj community clash you can see it in both history books, but the no-maj records wouldn't be nearly as accurate since wizards try to cover up the incidents."
"Yeah, I guess humans as a whole have this phobia against the different," Tony sighed. "but hey kid, don't worry. I won't be the one to blow the whistle."
"Yeah, because if anyone had the ability to do that, of course it would be you," Peter shrugged.
"Don't believe me?" Tony said humorously, but Peter's spidey sense told him he was slightly hurt.
"No, no, of course I do," Peter said quickly trying to fix the situation. "It's just... some might not. You know."
"Ah, worried what your wizard friends might think of me?"
"It's the strangers I'm worried about," Peter said as he lightly ran his fingers over the spine of the now closed charms book. Looking down at it he remembered how this conversation started. "I hope you're not as worried about memory charms now," he said, attempting to bring the conversation back to the original topic.
Taking the hint, Tony let the subject change. "I'll admit, it's still a little freaky." A beat passed between them, "So, I bet you're hungry. Why don't we grab something to eat before we meet that wizard, yeah?"
"Yeah," Peter nodded "I just got to grab my shoes."
******
After a filling lunch of fish n' chips, the two found themselves staring at the old building that housed the Leaky Cauldron.
"This thing looks like it's 200 years old," Tony said looking over the structure, there was a slightly warped aspect of it that only building with a considerable age would possess.
"512 actually," said a deep voice from behind the two.
Peter and Tony both whirled around to see Hagrid. The large half-giant towered over them.
"Hey, there Fizzik, can I help you?" Tony said as he took a small step to put himself between Hagrid and Peter.
"Isn't that the giant from the really old movie?" Peter asked glancing up at Tony.
"The princess bride isn't old," Tony replied.
"It's older than me," Peter shrugged.
"Kid, everything's older then you," Tony rolled his eyes.
Hagrid just looked at the two with a confused smile, "well, I'm actually a half-giant if that makes any difference."
"Wait, half-giant? Kid, is this the wizard you were telling me about?" Tony looked up at the man who stood two feet taller than himself.
"Yeah, this is Rubeus Hagrid," Peter said moving from behind Tony and gesturing to Hagrid.
"Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts," Hagrid said holding his hand out. Tony took it to shake. "And might I add what a pleasure it is to meet you Mr. Stark, I want to thank ya for protecting this world."
"No problem... you're um, grips a little too strong there, buddy," Tony said with an uncomfortable tone.
"Oh! Sorry," Hagrid said letting go. Tony pulled his hand back and flexed his grip.
"How about we go see Diagon Alley?" Peter suggested.
"Yes, this wizarding community I've heard so much about. I still find it hard to believe that a whole community has been hiding under our nose for centuries," Tony looked back at the door to the Leaky Cauldron.
"More of a seein' is believin' kinda fella then?" Hagrid asked as he walked around them to the door of the tavern.
"Man of science, kinda have to be," Tony shrugged.
Tony and Peter followed Hagrid into the Leaky Cauldron, but the moment the door closed Peter looked around wide eyed. "It wasn't this full yesterday."
The tavern was filled to the brim with witches and wizards of all sorts, he even spotted a goblin or two at the bar.
"Don't think I've ever seen the cauldron this full," Hagrid said surprised.
"Hagrid... you didn't tell anyone Tony would be here, right?" Peter asked, he expected Tony to turn a few head but he'd hope it'd be fairly calm.
"'Course not, except the headmaster," the half-giant thought for a moment, "though, I suppose our conversation might've been overheard."
"Sorry, Tony..." Peter said quietly.
Before Tony could reply a woman pushed out of the crowd and greeted them with an overly enthusiastic smile that was emphasized heavily with red lipstick. Even if she wasn't standing in front of them she would have easily stuck out in the crowd of wizards wearing dark robes with her sparkling green dress and matching heels.
"Do my eyes deceive me? Or has Iron Man entered this humble establishment," she said a little over dramatically.
"The one and only," Tony said with his usual crowd pleasing smile. Guess it didn't matter if the press was no-maj or wizard, Tony could probably see them from a mile away.
"I'm Rita Skeeter, I write for the Daily Profit," she practically forced Tony into the handshake. A long green quill and notepad hovered beside her, Tony's attention was drawn to that immediately.
"Look at that, Pete," he pulled his hand away from the woman and tried to reached for the quill. The charmed quill obviously didn't like that and attempted to shoo Tony's hand away with it's sharp end, Tony pulled his hand back.
"It's charmed to take her notes I think," Just as Peter said that the quill started writing.
"Fascinating," Tony mumbled.
Rita made a small noise to draw attention back to her.
"Ah, yes. Miss Skeeter, I should have guessed wizards also have reporters, but I'm not here for a statement." Tony said trying to wave her off, but of course she was persistent.
"Of course not, but the real question is, why is the most famous muggle of the wizarding world here? Surly someone," she glanced suspiciously at Hagrid, "has broken the Statute of Secrecy."
"It was me," Peter said immediately. She seemed to just notice Peter's presence, obviously to focused on Tony.
"And you are?" She asked, her smile faulted slightly but she still managed the appearance.
Tony wrapped his arm over Peter's shoulders holding him close, "My adopted son, kinda just found out about the wizard thing so if you don't mind, this no-maj has some magic to see. Hagrid, buddy, lead the way," He said glancing up at the other man.
"Oh! Um, right!" Hagrid said as he walked passed them, it was easy to go through the crowd with Hagrid leading. Most got out of the half-giant's path before he needed to ask. It was easy to tell that most where there to see Iron Man, the crowd's quiet mumbling held Tony Stark as the main subject.
Thankfully Skeeter didn't follow and none of the crowd bothered them as they passed.
Hagrid lead them to a back door that opened up to what they originally thought was an alleyway, but seeing that it was lined with four brick walls equaling a dead end, Tony had second thoughts.
"Hope this isn't what you wanted to show me, Peter," Tony said looking around seeing only a garbage can and a few bits of trash littering the ground.
"This is only how ya get there," Hagrid said with a grin. He walked over to one of the walls with an odd pattern of bricks on it then tapped them in what was clearly a specific order.
Peter and Tony watched as the bricks shifted and moved away from the center. After a moment of them reordering and folding into themselves, a long street was revealed with a curving road and shops of all sorts lining the edges. It was packed with witches and wizards of all types, nearly all wearing robs and a majority wearing some kind of pointy hat.
Tony just stood there in the newly formed archway with wide eyes and his mouth partly opened.
Peter examined the bricks, "that's pretty neat, usually we just have walk through walls or shifting photo booths in New York. There was this one bookstore that had an elevator in the dictionary section, that was kinda cool." While Peter was treating the whole thing as a fun trick he'd seen variations of, Tony stood frozen.
The older man shook himself out of the initial shock and put a hand on Peter's shoulder. "Right, kid. The wizarding world exists. An entire civilization..." His voice trailed off as he scanned the street before him.
Peter tried to use his Spidey sense to get a better idea of what Tony what feeling but his mind was more jumbled and shifting then usual. The only think he got was a faint indication of stressful emotions but getting more specific would take to long, Peter resorted to just asking, "Tony, you ok?"
Tony just straightened his clothes in one smooth stroke before grinning down at Peter, "never better." Peter could tell the statement wasn't a total lie so he didn't question further.
Hagrid lead the two down the busy street as he started to point out a few shops.
"Over there is Ollivanders, it's the wand shop mostly visited by first years but even if you have to get a replacement Ollivander himself has a knack for finding one to suit ya. Then just there is the Owl Emporium, has the basic supplies along with post owls if ya need em." Hagrid was pointing out the stores as they passed.
Peter made sure to follow close behind, though, he kept glancing back at Tony trying to judge his reaction for everything. Despite the man's calm and put together exterior, Peter's spider sense could tell the mad was still processing everything.
"Wait, did you said an owl shop?" Peter asked, he interrupted Hagrid explaining the potions shop.
Hagrid didn't seem to mind though, and just looked back at Peter, "need to pick up supplies?"
"Yeah, I ran out of treats... though I'm not sure if they'll take the money I have. It's American Dragot," Peter pulled a medium sized pouch of coins out of his bag, he shook them slightly to make them gingle together.
"Well, no worried. Gringotts, the wizard bank, is just down the way, I'm sure they'll exchange it for ya," Hagrid pointed down the street at the tall white building that had pullers lining the outside.
"Gringotts?" He looked back at Tony, "do you mind if we go? MJ wanted me to get pictures of the place."
Tony just shrugged, "I don't see why not." At some point during the walk he'd put sunglasses on, it was a strange sight to see the no-maj surrounded by all the wizarding shops and people. He stuck out more then if he were wearing the Iron Man armor in New York.
"Gringotts it is then," Hagrid said as he lead them, they took a quicker pace since they had a destination as opposed to the wandering they were doing before.
The inside of the bank was just as impressive, with the long main room lined with goblins on high counters doing their work. A large golden chandelier hung overhead, Peter thought MJ would love a picture of the whole room.
"Are all banks owned by goblins?" Peter asked. "The one back in New York also has them."
"I wouldn't be surprised if they were. They're as clever as they come, but not vary friendly. I suppose they like working with gold." Hagrid replied.
"Sorry, you're saying these things are goblins? The tiny little creatures that go bump in the night?" Tony asked, his eyes were wide behind his sunglasses as he looked around the room.
"I guess from old muggle legend you might think so, but there's nothin' evil about them, just unfriendly," Hagrid said as they approached one of the goblin tellers.
The creature looked down at the three of them with a sneer. "And what can I do for you?" He asked with sharp teeth showing, in what was probably a smile.
"Here to exchange," Hagrid stated.
"Muggle money to galleons?" The goblin asked as he eyed Peter and Tony, who stuck out in their no-maj clothes.
"Actually, dragots to um... galleons?" Peter said glancing up at Hagrid for confirmation, the half-giant nodded.
"America..." the goblin grumbled. He shuffled papers around then pulled out a large box from one of the drawer of the tall desk.
Peter took his pouch of coins and reached up to place it on the goblin's desk. "All of that please," he said after talking a small step back.
The goblin took the pouch dumping the contents onto his desk as he start counting.
They stood in silence for a moment before Tony decided to break it.
"So, muggle is just another word for no-maj right?" He asked as he casually leaned back on his heels with his hands in his pockets. If it Peter didn't know any better he would have thought the man was used to the wizarding environment.
Hagrid seemed to be distracted by one of the other goblins so Peter answered.
"Yeah, a least that's what Hagrid told me. I think it's just what they're called here in Europe," Peter shrugged.
Tony just nodded.
"So, what do you think?" Peter asked hesitantly.
"Honestly?"
Peter nodded.
He let out a small sigh, "every time I think I've figured the world out it always throws something new at me. God, I don't even know what we're going to do about your school. Who do you even talk to about this stuff?"
"Well Hagrid works for a wizarding school maybe he knows?" Peter suggested.
The goblin called Peter's attention before handing back his coin pouch now full of galleons, sickles, and knuts. Just as he turned back to Tony Hagrid was finished talking with the other goblin.
"Hope ya don't mind, but I've got important businesses to do back at Hogwarts. The headmaster's called for me," the half giant said.
"I'm sure we can manage," Tony replied. "But hey, before you head off I was wondering how to get in touch with the headmaster of... Hogwarts was it?" He said, it was obvious he wasn't a huge fan of the odd name.
"Well that's easy, he's always acceptin' letters by owl. Just address it to Albus Dumbledore, then it's sure to get to him," Hagrid said his goodbye before leaving Tony and Peter in the bank full of goblins.
"Can Leia do that?" Tony asked after the half-giant left.
"She should, you can probably write him when we get back. I'm sure she'll be eager to have something to do," Peter was about to put the coin pouch back into his bag.
"Wait, can I see those a second?" Tony asked.
"Yeah, sure." Peter said handing the pouch to him. "Hey, I'm gonna grab a few pictures before we head out alright?"
"Knock yourself out kid, but don't go to far," he glanced back at Peter from over his sunglasses.
"Don't worry, I won't," Peter replied before he dug into his bag to grab something.
Tony opened the coin pouch and started looking through the different coins. Judging by the weight and sizes of the gold ones he'd have to guess they were solid gold, the silver and bronze coins were probably pure as well.
Before Tony could calculate the value of each coin in US dollars based on its size and metal, he was interrupted by a higher pitched, almost squeaky, voice calling his name.
"Mr. Stark?" Said a short creature, that Tony assumed was a goblin.
Now that he could see them off the tall desks and standing at its full height, it barely stood taller than the Tony's waist.
"Do I know you?" Tony asked, it was his usual gut reaction response when called out to.
"I'd assume not, seeing as you're not the type to visit Gringotts under normal circumstances," the little creature said as he looked up at Tony. "But that's besides the point," he held up his hand, "Egwin the Witted, I am the senior manager of this bank."
"Tony Stark, but you already knew that," Tony said plainly as he shook Egwin's hand.
"Many recognize your name, but most only know the title that is Iron Man. What all wizards don't realize is you are a man of muc wealth, and I am not foolish enough to pass up on this potential opportunity," both pulled their hands away.
"Guess that's why you're the Witted, " Tony said with a dry laugh, "but what opportunity?" He asked cautiously.
"We are a bank Mr. Stark, surely the answer would be obvious," Egwin replied.
"Just making sure you didn't have other motives, but I will have to decline. I have no interest in putting any of my money here at the moment."
"Very well, but if you change your mind I know just the vault for you," Egwin said with a small grin. He turned on his heels and walked away without another word.
Tony just watched the goblin for a moment before his gaze drifted to the golden chandelier above him.
"Tony, smile!" He heard Peter said.
He looked the direction of the voice but only managed a confused grin when he saw the kid holding a clunky old film camera that wasn't even from the current century.
"Whatcha got there kid? Shouldn't that be in a musium?" He joked as he walked over to Peter.
Peter just looked down at the device, "what, it's not that old," he protested.
"So you're calling Princess Bride old but this 70s camera's brand new?"
"Funny, I wouldn't take you for one to be an expert on the Princess Bride," Peter teased.
"Pepper's the expert, I just pick up a thing or two when she forces me to watch it with her," Tony playfully ruffled Peter's hair.
"Yeah, sure," Peter rolled his eyes as he lightly pushed Tony's hand away.
"Come on, punk, don't we have an owl shop to go to?" Tony said as he ushered Peter towards the exit of the bank with his hand on the kid's shoulder.
******
After the owl shop Peter and Tony visited a few other places that looked interesting. The bookstore caught Tony's eyes after he realized the distinct lack of technology in this portion of the wizarding community, whether Diagon Alley was an outlier or a reflection of the rest of the civilization was still to be determined. He probably could just ask Peter, but at the moment they were enjoying the sights, he marked it as a topic for later.
Tony was noticed by some, though not nearly as much as he would have been in a no-maj crowd. It was kinda refreshing not having to worry of the downsides of being famous, it had been too long since he enjoyed time out without having to throw on a crappy disguise that always seemed to work.
After spending hours in the bookstore, Tony made a note that next time they went there he'd bring a stack of cash to convert into wizard money. Since there was no database to learn about the wizarding world his next best was books, but he wasn't about to use any of Peter's money.
It wasn't till the left that they noticed it was getting late, they made their way back up the main street of Diagon Alley and back into the Leaky Cauldron where they made it to the no-maj streets of London.
<Welcome back, boss> FRIDAY said once they were on the street.
"I never left," Tony said with the slight hint of confusion.
"Oh, right... I may have forgot to mention that, technology doesn't really mix well with magic," Peter said with a guilty smile.
"Don't tell me I have to replace all my stuff."
"No, don't worry. From what I know, it only seems to interrupt the devices temporarily. Once it's removed from the environment it goes back to normal as if nothing has happened. I've tested it alot, I haven't had anything brake because of magic exposure."
"Interruption? What kind?" Tony asked.
"Best I can guess is something like electromagnetic pulses, but it's less damaging and just disrupts the electricity flowing in the device, well, at least that's my theory. I haven't been able to test it much since the only place I regularly went to that was magically saturated enough was school, but it was so saturated that I couldn't find a clear area to use other tech to interpret any readings on the devices I made... witch weren't many to start with. In my three years of school I've only managed two experiments."
"If this is something you're really interested in I could help. I'd work on the outside tech and you test it while giving me pointers?" Tony suggested.
"That could work," Peter furrowed his brow in thought. "Doing that we can rule out whether or not no-maj tech can resist magic on its own."
"Are you suggesting that if it can't, then we mix technology with magic?" The subject was clearly peeking Tony's interest.
"Well, yeah, it's the only next logical step... though, there is a problem," Peter sighed.
"And that would be?"
"I can't use magic outside of school, and if I tried tampering with the technology in a saturated environment it could complicate the results."
"When can you use magic?" Tony had FRIDAY contact a driver, a black car with tinted windows pulled up to them.
"17, so like two years," Peter followed Tony into the back of the car.
"During that time you can develop and perfect the tech side of things, get them to work as well as they can without... the other element," Tony glanced at the driver.
Peter just nodded, "yeah but what if I can't just add onto it? What if I have to start over completely? What if it doesn't even work?"
"Pete, take a breath," Tony said before Peter could go on a tangent. "You're not going to know the answers to any of that stuff until you try. So what if you have to start over, you learned something and that progress might not go towards your current goal but it always has the potential to help some other idea you might have further down the road."
"I know, it's just..." Peter trailed off as he looked out the window.
"What?" Tony asked gently.
"It's just all your projects seem to work how you want them to." Peter said quietly.
"Ha! I wish that were true," Peter's spidey senses picked up a trace of sorrow and loss but it was quickly covered up as the man continued, "I've got terabytes worth of failed projects."
"Really?"
"Of course, a lot of those I knew we're going to lead to dead ends but I went through with them anyways," Tony put his hand on Peter's shoulder. "Look kid, either you create what you want or you end up building the world's first tech immune to EMP. A lot of that sounds better than doing nothing. You have to trust in your abilities, learn from your mistakes, don't drag yourself down." The car pulled to a stop and he gave Peter an affectionate pat on the back before getting out.
Tony was right, the only thing holding him back was himself. He felt a new determination towards the project he'd been imagining for years.
******
Albus Dumbledore,
Due to my current arrangements with the United Nations, I am unable to send my adopted son, Peter Parker, to his usual wizarding school, Ilvermorny, in the United States. I'm not familiar with the school's rules especially since I'm hardly familiar with the wizarding world, having just discovered its exsistands a day ago.
I only hope that he would be allowed to attend Hogwarts this year since the alternative would be him having to live half a world away from me.
I wants what's best for him and sending him back to the US alone doesn't sit well with me. I'm aware that the wizarding schools are similar to no-maj boarding schools but I plan on visiting as often as I can, even if I have to knock down the doors as Iron Man.
-Tony Stark
******
Dear Mr. Stark,
It was a wounderouse surprise to receive an owl from you, though I suspect you may have been borrowing young Mr. Parker's.
Still, your request is an rare one and I would be lying if I said the timing was convenient and I will admit, that usually I would be forced refuse the request since every student that has ever attended Hogwarts has had their name written in the Book of Admittance by the Quill of Acceptance. These are two very old, very powerful magical artifacts that have determined who is destined to attend Hogwarts, some names are written the moment they are born and others only mere months before the start of their first year.
For the past few days, as I take a few hours of my time to spend in the secluded room these artifacts are held in, I've noticed the quill becoming increasingly agitated as it attempts to wright a new name within the book, but the book had refused the let the quill's ink touch its pages. This, of course, is nothing new. The Book of Admittance usually does not allow a name to be placed unless the child has show sufficient magical abilities, but what is particularly peculiar about what I witnessed is the shear determination the quill had. The days leading up to your letter I have watched as the quill continuously tired to place a new name on the pages.
It was only mear hours ago that I saw the struggle between the two end, with the Book of Admittance finally allowing it's pages to be marked with a new name. It wasn't till after that I returned to my office to find your letter waiting for me. You can imagine my surprise when I discovered that you requested Peter Parker, the very name that was just written in the Book of Admittance moments before, attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
So with that being said, this letter will be accompanied by Peter Parker's acceptance letter.
Sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore
Hogwarts Headmaster
***
Dear, Mr. Parker Stark,
We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Due to the unusual circumstances of your acceptance into Hogwarts, along with the mandatory visit from the schools representatives to children with muggle parents, I will be accompanying you to gather your supplies on 11 August at noon.
Term begins on 1 September.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva Mcgonagall
Deputy Headmistress
******
Tony and Peter read their letters separately. At first when Leia returned with no letter Peter would fell Tony's disappointment, he quickly reassured the man that usually people will send their own owls in return, especially if it's more official business.
Sure enough, just days later, a brown barn owl tapped on the balcony doorway one afternoon. They were eating room service for lunch and Peter practically ripped open his own letter eager to know the results.
"I was accepted!"
"And of course that was determined by a magical book and quill?" Tony questioned glancing over the letter from Dumbledore for the second time.
"There are weirder magical objects out there," Peter shrugged, unbothered by how he was accepted into the school.
"Like what?"
"Well, there are magic portraits that can talk, or flying brooms, or- wait! My pictures should be done developing," Peter quickly got up from his spot on the floor in front of the couch. He ran off into his room and returned with a short pile of pictures.
"Here, pictures also move, kinda like gifs," Peter jumped over the back of the couch with the grace of a spider then landing next to Tony who was finishing the final bite of his hamburger.
He wiped his hand on a napkin before reaching over to grab the picture, he looked in awe at the moving images. There were a few of the architecture of Gringotts as well as shots from around Diagon Alley, a few featured pictures of Tony.
It was odd seeing the photos move in his hands, they were on a loop of set actions but doing so in such a away were you could never tell where the loop started or ended.
"How'd you do that? Was that old camera magic?" He asked glancing over at Peter.
"No, just a normal old film camera, it has no electricity powering it so it can work in the magic environments. It was how I developed the film that makes them like that, Ned helped me make the special potion I developed them in."
"That's awesome, could you teach me how to do that sometime?" He handed them back to Peter who shuffled through the pictures pulling one out and handing it back to Tony.
"Yeah, I'd need to get more potion though, I only had enough to develop these. But here," Peter handed the photo he was fishing for to Tony.
The man took it looking down, it was one of Peter and Tony in a dusty corner of the book shop. Tony was examining the spines of the different titles when Peter's image mouthed 'smile, Tony' Tony's image looked into the camera and put a hand on Peter's shoulder as he leaned in for the kid's selfie with a genuine smile. They both grinned and laughed before Tony's image turned back to the books to examine them, Peter's image had reached out of frame, presumably to adjust the camera. After that the loop repeated.
Tony had seen this picture when looking through the others, it was one of his favorites.
"That one's my favorite too," Peter said with a found smile,
Tony was still getting used to the whole 'Peter can kinda read minds' thing.
"I made two of them, I was going to give you that one," Peter nodded towards the picture.
"Thanks Pete," Tony said as he glance back at Peter. "Now the real question is, wallet or picture frame?"
"If you want, when I get to school I can shrink it for you, make it wallet sized."
"What can't magic do?" Tony said with a faint laugh, his eyes were back on the picture again.
"Bring back the dead," Peter said quietly.
Tony broke his gaze from the pictures, he set it on the coffee table before wrapping an arm around Peter, pulling him into a light hug. "I know it's been tough, Peter," he sighed, "you know you can talk to me about it right?"
The whole summer Peter hardly talked about his Aunt May, Tony didn't want to push the sensitive subject.
Peter didn't respond at first, his head rested against Tony's shoulder as he stared off at the picture on the coffee table.
"I feel guilty sometimes," he finally said after a long stretch of silence. "She's gone and I couldn't save her..."
"Peter, there was nothing you could do. No magic or spider powers could have stopped what happened, accidents happen and no matter how much you try to plane for it, there's always going to be things you can't control."
"But if I was there-"
"But you weren't, Peter," Tony said gently. The billionaire usually wasn't one for moments like these, he couldn't even count how many times he actively avoided them, but Peter was slowly becoming the acception for a lot of things. "Look," he pulled away slightly but kept both hands on Peter's shoulders as he looked the kid in the eyes, "I know you want to be a hero, but you need to understand that sometimes, you can't save everyone. It's a hard truth but you need to know it, otherwise you're going to drive yourself mad, but just because you know that, doesn't mean you shouldn't still try."
Peter's eyes drifted back to the photo, "it still hurts."
"And that's ok, but don't let that stop you from being happy, from enjoying things, because I know she'd still want you to be happy."
Peter nodded, "thanks... for everything. I know it probably hasn't been easy but just, thanks."
"Anything for you, kid." Tony said as he ruffled Peter's hair in attempt to lighten the mood. It worked, if only just a little.
******
With the Deputy Headmistress' visit approaching, Tony was glad he didn't have to fight with the UN or British government scheduling that day. Since it was Saturday none of the politicians were to keen on dealing with Tony Stark's usually antics.
Peter used his time before the 11th to explore the city, but instead of grabbing his backpack and coat he put on a new black and red spider suit. Tony thought it was better to pretend to be a different hero while in London since it would be odd to see New York's Spider-Man on the streets of London. It had the risk of connecting Spider-Man with Tony and by a lesser extent to Peter. So, Peter reluctantly took the alternate suit, despite already getting attached to the look of blue and red.
London was surprisingly calm, compared to New York that is. There were still a few attempted mugging Peter stopped along with a robbery the Peter prevented before they even got past the bank doors. He had to thank his spidey sense for that, the guys were letting off some suspicious thoughts, it didn't take him long to find out the truth.
Finally it was August 11th, as noon approaches Peter was getting excited, he read over the letter a few times just to make sure he had that right day, though, there was one thing that stuck out to him that he'd been meaning to ask Tony about.
"Why does it say Parker Stark?"
"Because technically that's your legal name, Peter Benjamin Parker Stark. A product of the adoption process, you can change it if you want," Tony was in the armchair while Peter laid across the couches, this setup was their unofficial seating arrangement.
"So, do I have two last names now or two middles names?"
"I two last names," Tony said as he typed something on his phone. Peter wouldn't be surprised if it was SI business.
"That's kinda cool," Peter said glancing back at the letter, but before he could make another comment there was a knock on the door.
Peter literally jumped up from the couch running over to the hotel door, he didn't bother looking through the peephole, his spidey sense informed him that it was definitely a witch on the other side.
Opening the door a tall, older woman stood there with green robes and a pointed hat.
"Mr. Parker Stark I presume?" She said looking down at him.
Peter felt a sense of kindness from the woman, but also a warning that she was not to be trifled with.
"Um, yeah. Yeah that's me," he said with a noivouse smile as he held out his hand to her. "But you can just call me Parker."
"Professor Mcgonagall, it's a pleasure to meet you," she said with a thin smile as she shook his hand.
"Decided to drop the name, kid?" Tony said walking up behind Peter.
"Well, two last names sounds kinda.."
"Clunky?" Tony finished, Peter nodded. "Don't sweat it kid, go by what you want," he said with a faint smile as he ruffled Peter's hair. Peter protested against the action and then spent the next moments trying to smooth his hair down again as Tony introduced himself to the Professor. "Tony Stark," he said holding out his hand.
"Oh, I'm aware. Just so we're clear, you fame and fortune will not be granting you or Mr. Parker any special treatment at Hogwarts," she warned before taking his hand. "Professor Minerva Mcgonagall, teacher and deputy headmistress at Hogwarts," she gave Tony a more formal greeting.
"Guess Peter will just have to earn that with his intelligence then," Tony responded.
"I hope your confidence in him is well placed, if only for Mr. Parker's sake. I have been speaking with the Headmaster of Ilvermorny, it seems you may be behind in some of your subjects, the lessons at Ilvermorny are ordered differently. I'm sorry Mr. Parker, but it may not be so easy to catch up," she looked down at Peter with a worried smile, he could tell her sympathy was genuine.
"I'm sure I'll manage," Peter shrugged.
"Yes, well, that is the hope. Now then, shall we head off? I'm short on time due to important business at the school, so we will be apparating to Diagon Alley," Mcgonagall replied.
"Oh no, I hate side-alonging," Peter mumbled as the professor stepped further into the room then closed the door behind her.
"Apparating? That would be..." Tony trailed off prompting for an answer.
"It's like telaportaion," Peter explained.
"Of course it is," Tony sighed with a faint laugh.
"If I could have both of you put a hand on my forearms," Mcgonagall said as she held up an arm for each of them. Peter put his hand on one of her arms and Tony hesitantly grabbed the other. "Hold tight," was the only warning they got before the world shifted.
Peter could feel the world compress around him, it was uncomfortable and irritating to his sensitive senses. His spidey sense buzzed with the equivalent of empty static on the radio, when their feet hit solid ground an instant later, Peter was left with a headache.
But he seemed to be faring better than Tony, who was currently using nearby brick wall for support.
"Shit, it feels like I got hit with Thor's hammer again," he gasped. With one hand on the wall, he used the other to hold his chest.
"I guess you'd be the only one to make an accurate comparison like that," the Professor said slightly amused. "Though, I must say, I'm impressed you didn't lose your lunch, Mr. Stark."
"Flying in a tin can with six times the force of gravity on you gives you a strong stomach," Tony said pushing off the wall. He seemed mostly recovered, but Peter sensed he also had a headache. He looked over at Peter, "you alright kid?"
"Yeah, wasn't my first time being a side-along," Peter responded.
"My apologies, apparition is not the most comfortable means of travel for passengers, but it is the fastest, shall we go then? There are a few stops that I need to accompany you to," she turned and her cloak flowed behind her as she walked out of the side alley they apperated into. Peter quickly followed, Tony not far behind.
Their first stop was Ollivanders, Tony and Peter visited Diagon Alley one other time after their first visit with Hagrid but they never stepped foot in the shop before now, mostly because there was no need for Peter to get a new wand and there were other shops that were catching their interests.
They stood at the doorway just in front of a cluttered desk, there were all sorts of wand boxes scattered about and the shelves that held the countless numbers of boxed wands looked like they might collapse from the weight.
The door had opened with the faint chime of a bell already notifying the shopkeeper.
A man with almost untamed white hair stuck his head out from behind one of the many wandshelves. He grinned when he spotted Peter.
"Are you the American wizard I wonder?" He hurried over to the front of the store. "Yes, yes," the man said as he reached behind the cluttered desk and pulled out a wand box. Peter's name was etched onto it.
"Mr. Parker, Mr. Stark, this is Garrick Ollivander. He was sent your wand by one of the pukwudgie wandkeepers of your school, Mr. Parker," Mcgonagall informed.
"And what a peculiar wand it is," Ollivander said with an almost gleeful smile. "The beautiful craftsmanship of the waving hornbeam at 12 and 3/4ths inch," as the man spoke he carefully opened the box with Peter's wand. The light caramel colored wand was a welcomed sight to Peter, it was like seeing an old friend for the first time in months. "What I find most interesting," Ollivander continued, "is the feathers grasping the base of the handle, almost as if... the wand itself has a hand on it's magic. Though, I'm sure the crafter was well aware of the properties the thunderbird tail feather core." Ollivander took the wand out of the box holding it lightly as he placed the box on the table, "may I?" He asked, looking up at Peter.
Peter nodded. Ollivander held the wand in his grasped and flicked it towards a decorative vase that sat on his desk, but nothing happened.
"Yeah, it does that," Peter sighed.
"What, was something supposed to happen?" Tony asked.
"Even a wand wielded by an improper owner will reaction somehow," Mcgonagall said with a hint of confusion.
"Very curious," Ollivander was completely fascinated by the lack of reaction. "Here, why don't you try?" Ollivander gently held the handle out to Peter.
Peter took it, gripping his hand around the familiar handle. He glanced at Ollivander who motioned towards the vase. Peter just shrugged before he jerked his wand sharplly at the vase, it immediately shattered into pieces, but before anyone could react he tapped the shards with the tip of his wand muttering reparo. The vase was formed back together returning to its spot on the desk as if its pieces weren't just scattered around the room.
"It doesn't like anyone else, most people in my charms class had tried it but it never works for them," Peter said with another shrug.
"I've seen wands that resist others but one that completely refuses is rare," Ollivander said in a distant town, "Tell me, has it ever casted spells on its own?" He asked suddenly.
"All the time in my dueling club, usually simple stuff like disarming spells or knock backs, the occasional shield but that was before I got the hang of the wandless shield spell my friend was teaching me," Peter lightly twirled his wand in his hand, it was nice to have it back after the summer of feeling almost helpless without it.
"That would be the core, thunderbirds naturally have a sense for danger and will react to it. The core mimics the animal in that aspect, though it is a rare quality amongst wands, not many thunderbird tail feather core wands exist anymore, not since the outlaw of collecting the creatures feathers." Ollivander said as he took the wand's box placing the lid back on before handing it to Peter. "Take good care of it young man, and that wand will do you well."
Peter nodded as he took the wand box.
"Thank you again Ollivander for receiving the wand," Mcgonagall said with a small nod then ushered the other two out the doors.
"It was my pleasure," the man replied with a smile before disappearing into the endless shelves of wands.
"Flourish and Blotts is our next stop, though it's the final one I'll be accompanying you to. There are some books not included on your supply list that you'll need," the Professor headed down the busy street with Tony and Peter following.
Peter could feel Tony eyeing Peter's wand, his mide irradiated with curiosity. "Here, want to look at it?" Peter said holding the wand to Tony.
Tony took the wand holding it lightly in his hands as he examined it. "I thought it'd look more... mystical. With glyphs or etchings."
"Every wand is different, some do but it doesn't go towards the wands magic, at least I don't think," Peter tilted his head.
Tony flicked the wand similar to the way Peter did when destroying the vase, but of course nothing happened.
"You're lucky my wands so stubborn," Peter laughed.
"Why's that?" Tony asked raising an eyebrow.
"Because if you tried that with any other wand it would kick you clear down the street. Wands really don't like muggles using them."
"You could have said something before I tried that!"
"What, I knew it wasn't going to do anything," Peter grinned.
"You're such a brat," Tony laughed as he handed the wand back.
Peter smiled innocently as he took it.
Mcgonagall had lead the way into the bookshop, but Peter and Tony were already familiar with the place from their previous visits, though, it was nothing compared to the way the professor weaved through the shelves with ease. She'd grab books and piled them into Peter's arms, by the time they were done any normal teenager would be struggling to keep the weight of the books, but for Peter this was nothing to the literal tons he was used to supported as Spider-Man. If Mcgonagall noticed she didn't say anything, but Peter could sense that she had.
"That should be all," the Professor said after the last book. "Now if you'll excuse me- Oh Ms. Granger," Peter followed Mcgonagall's gaze as it landed on a brown bushy haired girl just behind them. She looked to be about Peter's age, if not a year younger, but Peter had always been on the older side of his class so he wouldn't be surprised if they were the same year.
"Professor Mcgonagall?" The girl said with a friendly smile, she walked over to the group and glanced at Peter, but when her gaze fell on Tony, her eyes went impossibly wide. "Y- You're Tony Stark," she said in disbelief, "I thought Rita Skeeter was just stringing rumors again."
"That reporter sounds like the type," Tony said casual.
"Mr. Stark's son will be attending Hogwarts this year," Mcgonagall said.
"A transfer student? I didn't think that was allowed," the girl said with a confused expression.
"I assure you it's quite unheard of, but Mr. Parker qualifies. Though, I must say your timing is perfect, Ms. Granger. Would you be able to help these two to pick up the rest of their supplies? Unfortunately I must leave for school matters," Mcgonagall sighed.
"Oh, of course! I'm doing the same, Hermione Granger," She said holding her hand out to Tony, he shook it with a small nod.
"Peter Parker, nice to meet you," Peter nodded, his hands were a little too full for a hand shake at the moment.
"I assure you, you're in good hand, Ms. Granger is one of my top students," Mcgonagall said with a hint of pride.
"Thanks Professor," Peter said before she left.
"Here, Pete let me grab a few books before we check out," Tony then disappeared down one of the aisle.
"So Tony Stark's your father?" Hermione asked curiously. "I didn't think he had any kids."
"He doesn't, I'm adopted," Peter shifted slightly. He could tell this was a first of many explanations of his relations to Tony.
"Oh, ok. I bet it was a shock for a scientist like him when he found out."
"Yeah, with all he's seen, he kinda has to keep an open mind. Plus he already met a sorcerer back in New York, so the concept wasn't completely forin, it was just the secret society part that was catching him up. Had to bring him here a few weeks ago to prove it."
"He's only known for a few week? He acts like he's known magic longer, I thought someone like him would be more resistant of the idea," she said a little surprised.
"He's been pretty supportive actually," Peter said looking fondly in the direction Tony ran off to.
"Still, a man like him could completely expose the wizarding community, how do you know you can trust-"
Peter knew she didn't mean anything bad by that but was only concerned, still, Peter went defensive when she questions his trust. "Look, he's not what the papers and the press say he is," Peter interrupted.
"Sorry," she apologized noticing she must have hit a nerve, "I didn't mean anything by it, its just..."
"I know, sorry I didn't mean to snap."
"No need," she smiled, "I have a few hot headed friends that would have reacted the same if I was ever regarded like that."
Peter's spider senses picked up the thought of round glasses and the color red, just a lot of red, almost orange actually. Strange, usually his senses didn't pick up images, maybe it was developing more? Or it was a very strong thought, he could definitely sense a friendly affection for the two she was thinking of.
"Same, I'm kinda sad that I won't see them this year, they go to my school back in America. I can't even send a letter to them because my owls not strong enough for the flight overseas," Peter sighed.
"Ilvermorny, right?"
Peter nodded.
"I read a book about the different wizarding schools around the world, it was mostly European schools but it did mention others, do you mind telling me about it sometime? I'd love to hear about it from a student's perspective. Do you really have giant statues determine your house?" She asked eagerly.
"Yeah, three of them picked me, so I got to chose which one to go into. Thunderbird's my house."
"You get to pick?"
"Only if more than one statue reacts, otherwise there's no choice."
"At Hogwarts there's a talking hat, I wonder if you be put in the sorting ceremony with the first years."
Before Peter could respond Tony put his hand on his shoulder, "alright kiddo, let's get out of here." Under one arm was a handful of books about different histories and theories of magic.
"I was just on my way out, I'll follow you two," Hermione said.
They all checked out and Peter was given a charmed bag that had a temporary enlargement charm on the inside. Tony pretended not to be bothered by the impossible dimensions of the bag, but Peter could sense he kept running equations in his head trying to solve the conundrum, though, he grew frustrated as he realized he probably never would.
"My parents are over at the ice cream parlor seeing if they have sugar free treats, I've got to go get them really quick if you want to join me," Hermione said gesturing down the street.
Peter was about to accept the offer before Tony spoke, "Actually we were going to stop by the owlery real quick," Tony pointed his thumb in the opposite direction.
"Meet you at the supplies shop then?"
"Yeah, sounds good," Peter replied. When Hermione left he looked over at Tony with a confused smile, "Why are we going there?"
"To get you a new owl," Tony said matter of factly.
"But I have Leia."
"But she can't fly overseas."
"Tony, you really don't have to it's fine," Peter said quickly, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't excited for the thought of talking with his friends again.
"Nonsense, we're getting you another owl," Tony said stepping into the shop.
They spoke with the shopkeeper about an owl that could easily fly over seas and they were shown a selection of the largest owls Peter had ever seen. Some of them had a wingspan larger than both of Peter's arms stretched out.
Tony seemed to take notice to a pitch black owl with dark piercing eyes, it seemed to be the largest of the all.
"Hey if you get that one you could name it Vader, stick with the theme," he joked.
Peter laughed, he looked at the intimidating owl for a moment trying to get a sense of it with his spider sense. Animals were easier to read than people, Peter was surprised to see that this large dark owl had a sense of sadness. It had been here longer than any of the other owls, watched for years as the other creatures got homes and fulfillment of their postal training while it sat there without a purpose, guess nobody wanted to pick it because of its unfriendly looks and stature.
"Yeah, lets get it," Peter said, suddenly serious. Tony and the owl looked at him with surprised expressions.
"You sure, kid? It looks a bit... darth."
The owl glared at Tony as if to say 'don't ruin my chances.'
"Yeah, I definitely want that one," Peter held his arm out and motioned for the large owl to jump down from its perch near the tall ceiling of the shop.
The owl glanced at Peter's outstretched arm, questioning Peter's decision. The owl was aware of its abnormal size and weight, it also knew that no slim looking teenager like Peter should be able to hold its weight on just one arm without struggle.
"It doesn't seem to want you," Tony commented.
"He doesn't think I can hold him with one are," Peter said with a bit of humor in his tone. "Come on," Peter waved to the owl "I'm stronger than I look, promise."
The owl was sceptical but silently swooped down with a grace that was surprising to its size. It landed on Peter's arm but held its wings out slightly ready to take off if the strain was to much for the teen. It looked over at Peter with a surprised stare when the teen showed now issue in holding the weight.
"Told you," Peter said smugly.
The owl relaxed on his arm seeming content, Peter could feel its excitement.
"Please tell me your not actually going to name it Vader," Tony said almost sounding desperate.
"Why not? I think it suits him," Peter grinned. "What do you think?" he asked the owl.
It gave a deep hoot of approval in response.
"Right, let's get the giant owl that looks like it will kill use in out sleep," Tony said sarcastically as they went to the shopkeeper.
Spending the rest of the afternoon with Hermione as they gathered school suplies was very enjoyable.
It turned out both of her parents were no-majs and they were dentists, it explained why they were so interested in sugar free ice cream. They were quite shocked when they saw Tony, and didn't get over the fact they were with Iron Man as easily as their daughter did. Peter thought she was pretty cool, she was nice, smart, and easy to talk to. He hoped he'd see a lot of her while at Hogwarts.
Eventually they were nearing the end of the outing, Hermione's parents mentioned something about her leaving them early for the Quidditch World Cup. With everything that had happened that summer Peter forgot that was coming up. Though, was immediately jealous of the fact that he wouldn't be able to go. That was until Tony decided he also wanted to witness the game.
After the Granger family left, the two made their way to Gringotts. Tony decided with how much time he'll be spending in the wizarding world, it was probably beneficial to put some of his money in the bank and there was an extremely good change that Egwin the Witted would get them complimentary tickets to the Quidditch World Cup if it were mentioned.
[A/N: So I decided to draw out Peter's wand, it was to tempting not to, plus I've had the idea for awhile now. I'm not vary good at coloring, just line art, so you'll have to use your imagination for that.]
(Also pardon the terrible lighting.)