Chapter Text
Tony looked at the thing across the table. He was caught between laughing and crying. He settled for staring. Between the fluffy curls and brown eyes, there was no mistaking what or who it was.
Honestly, Peter Parker was a danger magnet and ended up in drastic situations. The situations before could be handled, albeit tedious. The lack of thermoregulation lead to a heater in his suit, heightened sight required special sunglasses, and even the nightmares after the Vulture was basically solved by late night movies and a therapist.
But now, not even Tony Stark knew what to do. What was he, a billionaire, playboy genius, and superhero, supposed to do with a spider teen that had been reduced to a less than three-foot, spider toddler?
What the fuck was he supposed to do?
He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. Tony was on the brink of letting his anxiety take over if it weren't for the child in front of him. "Okay, Peter, explain this to me one more time."
Peter looked at the clock hanging on the wall of his chemistry classroom, then banged his head onto his desk for the umpteenth time.
His mind wandered as his last teacher of the day droned on about the colligative properties of solutions. For a concept he basically exploited everyday to replenish his web fluid, he wanted nothing to do with the lecture.
Today was Friday, which meant lab time after school. Happy would pick him up from his apartment tonight and ship him off to the Avengers Compound. For the entire weekend, he'd spend hours alongside Mr. Stark improving their suits, inventing new solutions for Stark Industries, or simply tinkering.
Last time, they'd added several more web shooter combinations accessible via KAREN which Peter longed to try. He'd patrol before Happy picked him up.
Mr. Stark also mentioned something about a visitor coming that he wanted Peter to meet. He was cryptic, making Peter anxious to meet said person.
The bell rang and the students hurried to put away their things, excited for the weekend to start.
"You losers still up for a movie night on Sunday?" MJ asked as the infamous trio of friends walked to the front of the school together.
"Yeah, my mom said she can have you guys come over around 5 and we'll order pizza." Ned confirmed, "Will you be done with your internship by then, Peter?"
"Of course, I should be done by noon anyway."
"We are not watching any Star Wars this time." MJ declared as they claimed a bench near the pickup area.
"What?" Ned was confused, "Why not? They are the best movies ever created and must be honored properly with marathons."
"No offense, but I can only sit through so many space battles."
"You've insulted Lukas Films." Peter pointed out. "And nearly all fans of space-themed movies. That's about half the population, MJ. That's a lot of enemies."
"They can fight me."
"You're on your own," Ned said as stood up and waved towards the line of cars. "My mom's here, I gotta go. See you guys, Sunday!"
MJ looked up and saw her parent's car too. "Same. Bye losers!"
After quick goodbyes, Peter watched his friends drive away. That was his cue.
Peter ran into the nearest alleyway and emerged minutes later as the friendly, neighborhood Spiderman. He shot a web upwards, launching himself into the air. Peter swung towards the heart of the city, above the bustling crowds and cars.
His visual display lit up in recognition. "Welcome back, Peter. How was school?"
"Good, can you set a reminder for half an hour before Happy is going to pick me up today."
"Of course."
"Thank you, KAREN!"
He whooped and hollered, swinging around the corners of skyscrapers and diving over subway trains. Peter flipped onto the roof of a nearby condo complex. It wasn't the tallest building but overlooked a park Uncle Ben used to take him to.
He watched children play on the jungle gym and couples get ice cream. There were dogs chasing balls and frisbees and, at times, their owners. People were out jogging, roller skating, and biking. It was a pleasant feeling to know that there could be a little kid enjoying a day at the park like Peter had when he was younger.
All content feelings were washed away when he heard felt his Spidey Sense flare.
"KAREN, scan the area."
He looked around the rooftop and saw nothing, not even a flying pigeon. Peter searched his surroundings, all sides of the building. Besides a lost dog eating a sand which out of a trash can, he came up empty handed.
"There is nothing unusual within a mile radius of you, Peter."
His Spidey Sense had been wrong before. It once made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up during his physics class. He frantically looked for anything that might be dangerous, the only thing he saw was the physics unit test in front of him. Moments later, his teacher stood up and knocked over his water bottle. There was a loud crash and he apologized before putting it back and writing free-response questions on the board. Peter didn't consider either of those things to be a threat on any level. The day continued normally, Peter was confused but everything was fine.
Mr. Stark teased the idea of puberty screwing with him and his powers as he got used to his spidery counterpart.
So, he assumed his Spidey Sense was just messing with him. He shook his head in an attempt to relieve the tingling sensation at the base of his skull.
It was a quiet afternoon, with very little crime for the local superhero. This meant the rooftop above the park was now covered in loose webbing.
"Alright, KAREN, try the web grenade setting with 30% electricity and 45% elasticity."
Peter aimed and added another splash of white to the concrete roof. It was flimsy and crackled into pieces, the electrical current was broken within seconds.
"One more time and we'll move on. Please lower elasticity to 40%."
KAREN spoke up, "Happy will be picking you up in a half an hour, Peter. You should get going to or face his lecture."
"Okay, okay, let's go."
Peter walked to the edge and leaned back. He became weightless for a moment before catching and pulling himself back up.
"You realize you only had 0.6 seconds until smashing onto the floor." KAREN chastised.
Peter couldn't hold back the snarky remarks. "That means I had 0.6 seconds to spare."
"You were also 0.6 seconds away from me contacting FRIDAY."
"Touché. Are you and FRIDAY friends?"
"In a way. We are close, yes."
"Do you talk about me? I hope you say good things. You guys must have some good gossip."
"Yes, I tell her about the times you were 0.6 seconds away from becoming a Peter pancake."
"Hey! I thought we were friends, KAREN. Snitches get stitches." He smiled at his AI's personality. Peter could practically hear her smirking back. "Plus, I'm still-"
Peter felt one of his webs snap. He scrambled to shoot another, catching himself halfway to the ground. "-in one piece." He finished.
Peter slid to the ground, landing on an empty street corner. Judging by the familiar sites, he was close to his apartment. He fiddled with his web shooters for a minute, making sure all was intact.
He felt a prick on the back of his neck, then someone from behind putting him in a headlock. Peter threw them off with ease and narrowed his eyes at the attacker.
Who was dumb enough to attack Spiderman so openly in broad daylight?
Peter lunged at the attackers. He simply took a step to the side and Peter landed on the grimy New York road. The hero's vision tunneled and grew blurry. His limbs felt weighted down by lead and he struggled to push himself back onto the sidewalk.
Apparently, this guy knew what he was doing?
Through the slits of his eyes, he saw a man above him who held him down with a foot. The man tapped an empty syringe in his face and clicked his tongue. "Silly Spider."
Peter's world went dark and he slipped out of consciousness.
Meanwhile, Tony Stark was in his lab elbow-deep in the works of a drone. After a recent meteor shower, he was determined to replace and improve its sensors before sending it back up to orbit.
Dumb space rocks were not going to get in his way.
"Sir, there is an incoming call from Happy Hogan." FRIDAY interrupted. "May I put him through?"
After the billionaire made a noise of affirmation, Happy's voice was throughout the lab and laced with annoyance. "Hey Tones, where's the kid? I've been here for half an hour, normally he's running to the car. His aunt says she hasn't seen him since he left for school."
Dumb kids, however, might get in his way.
"What do you mean?" Tony pushed the drone to the side, wiping the excess grease and oil off his forearms. "Have you asked KAREN?"
"She's not responding. We don't know where he is."
Stark felt the initial panic set in. Peter would never miss a lab day at the compound nor deliberately turn off KAREN. "Okay, I'll track him down. Stay there. I'll let you know when I have something." The call ended. "FRIDAY, where is he?"
"He's on the corner of Parsons Blvd. and 45th Ave."
"Alright." He let his armor form around his body. It was the quickest way to get there, especially with New York's traffic. He was out the door in seconds, flying towards Queens. "ETA, girl?"
"23 minutes and counting."
"'N now I am 'ere." He finished.
Although this was no laughing matter, Tony couldn't help but smile at Peter's babbling. It was downright amusing. The best part was that Peter didn't seem to notice the slight lisp and mispronunciations of his younger self's voice.
It seemed as if Peter's body was just younger for he still has the memories and mental state as before. FRIDAY confirmed, after a quick scan, that he was in good health too. Unfortunately, the muscle memory for speaking wasn't as developed.
"Do you have any inclination as to how to turn you back to your normal, hormonal, teenage self?" At Peter's negative response, Tony let his head fall to the table in defeat. "Okay, then we'll start to figure it out. You were injected, right? Maybe if we find out the extent of the effects chemically, we can reverse or remove them. C'mon."
The billionaire began to pull up blue holograms with FRIDAY's help when he heard a grumble. He looked over at the toddler who was furiously blushing as he held his stomach, a weak attempt to quiet it.
Tony noticed the time and shrugged. Chemical reversals were typically a quick task. "How about dinner first?"
Peter nodded with a shy smile before beginning to slide off the table, crawling down the leg with the help of his sticky hands. It was reassuring to know he still had his powers. Then again, that meant a super-powered toddler. They'll have to run more tests on that later.
Tony took slow steps for his one stride was four wobbly steps for Peter and held open heavy doors all the way to the common rooms. He made sure to watch the boy carefully, not wanting him to fall or get lost in the compound. He didn't know how long peter would be like this either but knew he needed some supplies like fitting clothes; basic necessities. The shirt and remaining boxers would not last and they had little to no leads on a solution. A note was made to FRIDAY. It'd be a new experience taking care of a toddler for a little while, he hoped to have answers soon.
His train of thought was broken by his wife, "Tony!"
Pepper must have just gotten back from the tower, hair down and business attire rumpled. She was sitting on the couch staring at the small child who was now hiding behind Tony's legs at the sudden outburst.
"Who does he belong to, Tony? I swear this isn't a funny joke!" She spoke loudly with a tone of authority that made Stark Industries investors crumble to her demands. Even Tony felt himself cringe at the accusations.
No wonder the spider kid was hiding.
He clarified quickly. "No, no, this isn't a joke nor whatever you think it is. This is Peter, Peter Parker."
"Your intern? As in Spiderman? The vigilante in Queens?"
"How many Peter Parkers do I know, Pep? I found him like this after his patrol this afternoon."
"He's so small."
"I don't know how he ends up in these situations. He's gonna give a heart attack one day." He looked down at the spider child, "Petey? You remember her?"
The boy nodded and pointed at her with a toothy grin. "'Epper!"
She got up and crouched by Peter to get a better look. The boy still wore his oversized clothes from the transformation. The science pun on the front gave it away. Stark was not a tall man yet Peter barely made it to about his hips. His hair had more curls than before and his brown eyes were innocently expressive. "Tony, he's adorable."
"That's what I thought too." The man chuckles. "Yeah, figured he'd have you wrapped around your finger at first look. Kid's lucky."
She playfully hits him as she gets up. "As if he hasn't already done that to you."
Peter's stomach interrupts the moment once again, he blushes furiously. He hates to be so needy to the people who are already helping him get back to normal.
"Dinner requests?" Tony asks the group.
"How old is he? I don't want him to choke or otherwise not eat well."
Tony hadn't thought of that. "FRIDAY?"
"According to Peter's dental records after a brief scan, he is approximately two to three years old. He should be able to eat most things as long as they are cut into small pieces.."
"Perfect, you can still have solid food. Congrats, kid." He jokes but Peter only looks guilty and is unusually quiet. The genius should have known he'd still have his guilt complex towards getting help from others. The spider kid must be overwhelmed. Tony could sympathize. "Then I know just what to make. It'll take a little while if you can hang on. That okay?"
Peter nodded and followed Tony to the nearby kitchen. The man started to get out several boxes and jars labeled with various spices and ingredients. The fully stocked kitchen at the compound was a luxury Tony rarely got to enjoy. He practically lived off of coffee and takeout for convenience.
It was a wonder Tony never stepped on Peter. The boy stayed close, following his mentor. Eventually, he found his way onto a stool so he could finally see what Tony was doing on the tall counter.
It became a game that whenever the man looked away, Peter would steal a bite of something. Pepper joined them later in casual attire; she sat next to Peter and helped steal ingredients too. Whether it be cheese or basil leaves, Tony quietly made sure to cut more than he needed for the thieves across the center island. He kept looking over his shoulder dramatically though, making faces at the two's childish behavior.
Peter's giggles were infectious. He was quiet and understandable cautious at first but now looked like a carefree, happy kid sitting next to his wife. Tony knew he wasn't the most certified for child care, but he'd do his best. God, everything was so domestic. He was going soft.
"Alright, dinner is ready," Tony announced.
Peter fist-bumped the air and climbed down his stool as he shouted, "Yes!"
"Thank you for not starting another house fire, honey." Pepper quipped, "It smells fantastic though, what is it?"
"That was one time, it wasn't even my fault. It's Maria's Ravioli. You've had it before, Pep."
"Right, it's delicious." At Peter's confused look, Pepper continued. "You'll love it, Peter. It's pasta."
Apparently, that was a good enough answer for Peter because he began to dramatically demand said ravioli for his hungry three-year-old body.
Three bowls topped with sauce and grated cheese ready to go, they collected at the large dining table. Tony could barely remember the last time that table was used.
"Do you like it?"
The boy nodded furiously, cheeks full of pasta and hands stained with sauce. Peter decided early on it was much easier to eat without a fork. "M'ster St'rk, I didn't know you could cook. T'ank you!"
"You're welcome, it's a good thing for you I can." Tony said with a smile. "I used to eat this meal when I was younger, figured it'd work for you."
"Your mother must have had a tolerance for a mess then." Pepper tried to wipe Peter's face and hands as much as possible. Mr. Stark rolled his eyes, it was inevitable. Uncoordinated toddlers and red sauce do not mix. The oversized t-shirt and boxers Peter wore were most likely ruined. "Do we have any fitting clothes for him?"
"Not yet, FRIDAY?"
"Peter's supplies with be coming in about an hour."
"You are a godsend FRIDAY, thanks, girl. That gives us enough time to clean up." Tony prompted. "Let's go, Pete."
The boy handed his bowl to Pepper before rushing to follow his mentor. They went to Peter's room, a guest suite that slowly collected his things. Between overnight stays, injuries from patrol, and lab days after school, it didn't hurt to leave a room available.
Tony started filling the bathtub with warm water and added Pepper's bubble solution. He turned to the uneasy spider child beside him. "Ready?"
At the lack of response he sat down next to the boy and continued, "Look, I don't like this just as much as you. As a toddler, you need help. Sorry, I'm not gonna have you drown or slip and fall. I don't know how to explain that to your aunt on Sunday. It's okay to ask for help too, no one will be upset or bothered. I'm only here to help."
Peter nodded silently and attempted to take off his large shirt. Tony watched with amusement. The boy had managed to pull it up to his neck, struggling to pull it up and over his head.
The man had to bite his tongue not to laugh at Peter's honest attempt at being self-sufficient. "Petey, would you like some help?"
"No."
At this point, the boy was stuck. The shirt around his face left the boy blind as he squirmed to free his arms.
"You sure?"
"Yep."
Peter straightened up to try and wiggle out of this damn shirt. His uncoordinated, younger body was not helping though. He moved his arms as much as he could to pull at what fabric of the shirt he could grab. All of the swaying and squirming caused him to stumble around like a headless chicken until he finally lost his balance. Fortunately, Peter fell directly into Stark's lap.
The boy made a noise of defeat. "Please help me, M'ster St'rk."
Peter could see Tony's smirk as he pulled off the shirt with ease. Followed by his boxers, Tony grabbed a blushing Peter by the armpits and carefully placed him into the bathtub.
The toddler was immediately captivated by the soapy water. Peter tried to grab the bubbles with his hands, grinning when they floated with the ripples in the water or suddenly disappeared.
Tony got to work quickly. He massaged shampoo and conditioner into the boy's soft hair and rinsed, careful to avoid anything getting in Peter's eyes. The little spider was rather cooperative with the whole process, obediently tilting his head or offering a limb.
Then, he lathered the boy up in soap to remove the remaining mess of dinner. As a toddler, Peter was simply fascinating to watch and Tony couldn't help but stare when he finished.
Peter splashed around in the tub, giggling to himself and managing to hold a few bubbles in his hands. He practically squealed in delight when he clapped his hands together and saw the bubbles disappear or fly back into the water.
The genius couldn't think of any other word to describe Peter right now besides 'cute'. He'd never of thought he'd ever call something cute, especially a person. Yet here he was smiling alongside a three-year-old Peter Parker.
He got out his phone and took pictures. They would become great blackmail for embarrassment purposes later. His father would laugh at him, but right now Tony found he cared much more about Peter's approval than Howard's.
Stark placed a dollop of bubbles onto the boy's nose to get his attention.
Peter went adorably cross-eyed before rubbing them away and looking up at the man. "All done?"
Tony nodded and lifted him out of the bath and onto a white, fluffy towel on Tony's lap. He wrapped Peter in the towel, squeezed him for good measure, then brought part of the towel up to dry the boy's hair. Peter laughed when Tony made faces at him as he made his hair go crazy with a speedy towel dry.
Practically swaddled in the towel, Peter was taken to the common room. With another happy squeal, Tony dropped him onto one of the large couches next to Pepper with several boxes.
"The demon is now clean! I've done my job! I deserve an award." Tony announced dramatically.
"He's not a demon." Pepper replied as Tony pecked her on the cheek as he joined her near the boxes. "Everything arrived while you two were gone. It should be enough for a couple days, we can always order more if needed."
Tony opened one of the boxes and got a playful glint in his eyes. "Thatta girl, FRIDAY. Alright, Peter, let's get you into some clothes for the night."
Peter let the billionaire help him into a soft, footed onesie. He grumbled about the baby clothing until he noticed the familiar red and gold design. He froze, the fanboy inside Peter was screaming.
"I am I'on Man." Peter said breathlessly. Then he grinned up at Tony and happily chanted his hero's signature line over and over again. "I am I'on Man! I am I'on Man!" The spider was practically jumping up and down with excitement on the couch. Pepper had to put a hand on Peter's back to make sure he didn't fall over.
Tony's was surprised by the boy's sudden outburst of pure excitement. Apparently, his toddler body's emotions were more relevant towards mood swings than he first thought. It seemed his teenage counterpart took a backseat for a minute.
Tony decided to play along anyway. "Are you a fan of Iron Man, Petey?"
"Uh huh." Peter stopped bouncing and sat next to Tony. "You are my fav'rite, Mis'er St'rk!"
"And why is that?" He grinned.
"I'on Man has gaun'lets 'n flyin' boots 'n FRIDAY. You got BARF 'n tech ta help other people. St'rk Indust'ies has clean en'rgy with the arc reactor 'n charity with no weap'ns." Peter rambled like it was the most obvious thing in the world. " You're a genius 'n you help me ev'ry day. He'oes help people. You're my he'o."
Tony went silent. Usually, he made fun of the hero worship, but Peter truly looked at him like he hung the stars. He wasn't sure if he deserved that.
"Iron Man is pretty cool but my favorite is Captain America." Pepper claimed. Thank god for Pepper.
Peter looked shocked. "How dare you?"
"He's saved tons of people throughout history. I'm also sure he punched Hitler in the face."
He'd have that anxiety attack later, away from Peter. Tony cleared his throat and felt the need to defend himself. "Traitor!"
"But I suppose Iron Man and his family did make his shield. And Cap wouldn't be Captain America without his shield" She rolled her eyes and gave a reassuring smile to her husband. "So I've changed my mind! Iron Man is my new favorite."
Peter seems satisfied with her answer. It was justified. He turned to Tony and asked, "Whose your fav'rite, M'ster St'rk?"
"Spiderman. He has super strength just like Captain America. But, Spiderman made his own webs. He cares for the little guy too and not just big threats. I hear he's a really nice guy."
Peter blushed at the compliments and found himself yawning widely. He quickly covered his mouth with his hands in surprise. Why was his body so tired? He'd just sat around the latter portion of the day.
"Alright, bedtime for spider children." Tony clapped his hands and stood up. “C’mon Underoos.”
“Not t’red.” Peter folded his arms across his chest looking even more so like the petulant three-year-old he was. However, another yawn escaped.
“Liar.”
Tony picked up the boy by his waist, careful not to hold him too tight. He kept one arm underneath the boy’s tush at all times and wrapped an arm securely around Peter’s midsection. Tony hoped he was holding him right.
If he was able to put a teen hellbent on burning himself out in the lab to bed, then Stark could put a fussy toddler to bed.
Tony began to walk with Peter throughout the compound.
They walked towards the main entrance, covered in floor-to-ceiling windows. Tony let Peter look out onto the driveway and various planters lit up by garden lights. The
open grass fields nearby were empty and several parked vehicles remained motionless. It was quiet and peaceful: a distinct contrast from the nights Peter spent on top of buildings above the city of insomnia.
Tony and Peter wandered around the entry room. The man’s gait was slow and even as he cradled Peter. The constant motion and peaceful atmosphere were enough for Peter’s body to go limp in Tony’s arms.
The billionaire filed the moment away as a personal success.
They headed back to Peter's room, only across the hall from the Starks' room.
While balancing a toddler in one arm, Tony made a nest of pillows on Peter’s large bed. It wasn’t a long-term solution but would insure Peter couldn't roll off. That three-foot drop onto the floor would probably be devastating to a three-year-old.
He carefully laid down the boy and tucked the sheets around him. Peter instantly nuzzled further into the soft material.
It was amusing to see a sleepy Peter, his teenage self had shut up a while ago and his younger self took over. His thumb had already made it into his mouth and he unconsciously suckled. The kid's eyelids grew heavier by the second; they were practically closed.
Tony had FRIDAY take pictures which were immediately sent to his phone. He ran a hand through Peter's soft baby hair, biting his tongue. It was hard to resist the paternal instincts that rose seeing his protégée like this.
"Goodnight, Petey." He whispered.
The spider child mumbled back some incoherent response. It caused Tony to chuckle softly before keeping the boy's door open just a crack. With a warm, fuzzy feeling his chest, he left.
Tony joined Pepper on the floor of the common room, surrounded by cardboard boxes. She was folding the rest of Peter's clothing and organizing other supplies. Tony was amazed at how small teenage Peter's shirts and pants were when they went through the wash, but toddler Peter's clothing was even more so.
FRIDAY had ordered a few plain sets of shorts, vests, socks, shoes, shirts, pants, jackets, underwear, etc. that would last for while. They didn't know how long Peter was going to be like this. There was also a plastic set of dinnerware and some colorful sippy cups. His AI had even taken the time to get a set of wooden blocks and simple toys for Peter.
"He asleep?" Pepper asked.
Tony nodded and showed her the picture of the sleeping boy.
His wife smiled as she went back to folding clothes. "You're good with him."
"Sometimes."
Tony never even mused the idea of having children. Now here he was, supposed to take care of a spider toddler.
"I'm scared," Tony admitted as he fiddled with a wooden toy block.
"What for?"
"I don't want to screw this up, Pep."
"You've always had Peter's best interests at heart. To be fair, you're the closest thing to a father he's had in a while."
"I'm not his dad. I'm the last person who should be taking that role. Especially for Peter."
Pepper huffed. "I disagree. He looks up to you regardless of what you may think."
"That's the problem."
"So what? I'm not sure you get a choice, Tony."
"What if I end up like Howard!" Tony said with a harsh tone, albeit harsher than he intended. He took a minute to collect himself. "Sorry, I just don't know what I'm doing."
"That's okay, I'm not sure anybody has childcare perfected," Pepper reassured. "Plus, there is a very big difference between you and your father. One of you cares more about other people than themselves. That goes far in the long run."
"I guess." He threw the wooden block into a bin with the others.
"You support him, Tony. You can't deny it."
"True."
"And you are giving Peter the best support that you can give. It means a lot."
"Is that enough though?"
"Are you blind?" Pepper threw an empty cardboard box at her husband. "You have eyes, genius! Use them!"
"I have 20/20 eyesight, thank you very much." Tony shrugged off the box and anxiety. "Thank you, Pepper."
"Yeah, I know. Without me, you'd be in an insane asylum hitting yourself with a wrench." She teased and took Tony's hand, gently thumbing his calloused knuckles. "It's going be okay, alright? You aren't alone, we'll do our best."
Tony nodded and leaned in for a kiss. It was short and sweet, but the gratitude and loyalty behind it were meaningful.
After they pulled away, Pepper asked, "Can I assume you're heading to your lab, or are you going to surprise me this time and try out a normal sleep schedule."
"Ain't no rest for the wicked, Pep." Tony said as he got up. "I want to research everything I can on growth and regression while Peter is asleep, then we can start testing tomorrow. I'll make it quick."
"Fine." Pepper relented as she stood up and met Tony's lips once more. "Goodnight."
Tony escorted her to their room, then check on Peter who was thankfully sound asleep. He made his way down to the lab, asking FRIDAY to pull up research material. Tony flopped into a swivel chair and was greeted by numerous blue screens.
The man joined Pepper a couple of hours later, hoping the entire day was a bizarre dream.