"Ms. Motter, not that I don't love the idea of spending time with you, but I have to get on the bus for a field trip in half an hour-"
"You'll make it. There's someone I want you to meet first,"
Peter nervously walked down the hallway at Audelia's side. Getting dragged out of bed by your Aunt telling you that one of your idols is at the door for you is not how he planned on spending the day, but he wasn't entirely complaining. Though he knew he needed to get on that bus in half an hour, or he was never going to catch up to the man with the wings.
Audelia knocked on the door in front of her twice before popping it open, stepping inside with a smile. She gestured for Peter to follow, as he obliged, eyes going wide as he entered the living room, pointing at the man on the couch with young Aurora Motter climbing all over him.
"Is- is that Benjamin Motter? Like, the Benjamin Motter?"
"Ah, so this is the kid that you were telling me about?" Ben said to his daughter, scooping his granddaughter into his arms as she giggled. She climbed back onto the floor as Ben walked forward, extending a hand toward Peter. "Nice to meet you, Peter. Now, what do you mean by the Benjamin Motter?"
"They- you were a big part of the World Word II part of history class," Peter said, swallowing the lump in his throat as he shook his hand. "It's an honor to meet you, sir. The stuff you did in the war...it was really cool."
Ben let out a laugh, letting go of Peter's hand as Aurora stepped between them. She looked up at Peter, cocking her head to the side.
"You're Peter?"
"...yes?"
"I like him," Rora commented, latching onto Peter's arm as she looked up at her mom. "Can I keep him?"
"You'll see him all the time, Rora, but you can't keep him," Deli commented with a laugh, taking her off of Peter's arm and pushing her toward her dad's bedroom. "Why don't you go look at some of pap's pictures, yeah? We have to talk to Peter for a little bit."
With the young girl now in the other room, Peter was sat on the couch opposite of Benjamin and his daughter, his hands sweating slightly as he rubbed them on his jeans.
"Look, I don't know what you think I did but-"
"I heard that you're the spider in red swinging around the city at all hours,"
Peter's eyes went wide as he looked over to Audelia, stumbling on his words as she shrugged.
"I didn't tell him, so don't look at me,"
"I knew this one was Imperial long before she ever told me officially," Ben commented with a jab over at his daughter. "But when I heard that the New York webslinger was just a 15 year old kid, I had to talk to him."
Peter took a second to contain his nerves, trying to find something to say.
"I didn't ask to be who I am, but...I am," Peter awkwardly commented, still fumbling for words. "I...I don't know what I did and why you want to talk to me but-"
"I heard about Tony having to save your ass the other night. I wanted to talk to you because I was around your age when I threw myself head first into this crazy world too," the older man said with a shrug of his shoulders. "I want to stop you from making the same mistakes I did."
"...what?"
"When I was your age, I joined the war," Benjamin began as he leaned back in his seat. "I became Howard Stark's assistant, became part of the super soldier program, and helped create the superhero that has forever been one of my best friends. But to do all of that, I sacrificed a lot of my life. I sacrificed actually being a kid to run off to the army and try to live like a hero. It's not all glitz and glamour. You don't have to be the biggest superhero in the world, just use your powers to help the little guys. Don't sacrifice your childhood to have this life, it's not worth it."
"But I want to do this," Peter argued back. "I was given these powers for a reason, and it's my job to use them. If I can help save people, but I don't, then that's on me. I have a job to do. Aud- Ms. Motter, don't you feel the same? You don't regret it, do you?"
"I became Imperial to protect Tony. Almost every decision I've made, though my own, has been for Tony. So there are moments...where I think of what could've been if I didn't choose this life," Deli told the kid honestly. "I missed a lot of Aurora's childhood, which is the biggest regret of my life."
"But you love what you do, don't you?"
"I can't lie and say I don't, because I do, but this life extracts a toll. It tires you out, it wears you down, as you lay down your life for the world and receive nothing in return..."
Audelia trailed off, her voice going quiet. Benjamin placed his hand on top of his daughter's as he looked at the kid.
"I asked Della to bring you here because I was once in your shoes, kid. I didn't have powers, but I sacrificed my life in order to serve others. And while I would do it all again, that doesn't mean that I don't sometimes sit back and regret not being a child while I had the chance. If you can't listen to Tony, or even Deli, take it from someone who's gone through this. Just stay close to the ground, while you still can,"
The room was plunged into silence for a few moments as Peter sat quietly and thought. He opened his mouth to speak before shutting it, grabbing his backpack and slinging it onto his back, standing up.
"I, uh, I really need to get to the bus for the field trip,"
"I know," Deli whispered, nodding her head. "If you could go let Aurora know we have to go I'll get you there on time."
Benjamin watched Peter walk into the bedroom before his eyes trailed to his daughter. She sat quietly, staring down at the floor as his hand found her's again.
"I need you to know that Aurora loves you," he told her, squeezing her hand. "She doesn't hate your job, she loves what you do. If she could do it over again, you and Tony would always be superheroes."
"I know, but what I said was true," Deli looked up at her father. "Everything I have done in my life, every choice I have made, every sacrifice I have taken on...it's all been for Tony."
"Because you have loved him with your entire heart, for your entire life. And you always will,"
A tear finally escaped Audelia's eye and slipped down her cheek as she looked to her father, all to aware of the feeling of Maria's ring on her finger.
"But what if he never comes back? What if, by finally not choosing him, I lose him?"
Benjamin watched as his daughter stood and walked to the bedroom. Halfway there she paused, as he father spoke once more.
"Your mother never approved of you and Tony, but she always knew it was inevitable," he let out a low chuckle. "She told a story to you one night of two people...they were two halves of the same soul. That when the universe burst open and created life, the souls were made of the same atoms, bound together for all of eternity. And no matter how far those souls would drift apart, no matter the force that tried to separate them, they would always drift back together. Their life together would never be peaceful, as when they clashed they would clash hard. They would make the other question everything, change their reality, and leave a mark on them forever. No matter the lifetime, these souls would find one another again and again, destined to fall in love until the end of time...these two souls she spoke of were you and Tony. He'll come back, Della. He will always come back to you."
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Ugh I love Benjamin.